Libya heads towards nightmare scenario: Deadly car bombing rocks Benghazi
Car bomb explodes near hospital in Benghazi, killing, wounding dozens in
what officials say is first such attack on civilians.
By Ibrahim al-Majbari - BENGHAZI (Libya)
First Published: 2013-05-13
A powerful car bomb exploded Monday near a hospital in the Libyan city of
Benghazi, killing and wounding dozens in what officials said was the first
such attack on civilians since Moamer Gathafi's ouster.
Officials gave contradicting death tolls, however, as information trickled
in about the devastating bombing which destroyed a restaurant and damaged
cars and buildings near Al-Jala hospital in the centre of Benghazi.
Deputy Interior Minister Abdullah Massoud said 15 people were killed and
another 30 wounded in the attack on the eastern city, cradle of the 2011
armed uprising in which Gathafi was killed.
He stressed it was only a "preliminary toll".
But health ministry spokesman Salah Abdeldayem later said in Tripoli that
four people died and six were wounded.
A police official in Benghazi gave a higher toll.
Tarak al-Kharaz told Libya's Al-Ahrar television station that the car
bombing killed 13 people and wounded 41 others.
Dozens of people, many of them youths, rushed to the scene of the attack,
some even volunteering to gather body parts and place them in clear plastic
bags, journalists reported.
Witnesses said children were among the casualties, but it was not
immediately clear if they were dead or wounded.
The bombing wrecked cars and left debris scattered on the ground.
The deputy interior minister said the blast "totally destroyed a restaurant"
and damaged buildings near the hospital.
A security official said the blast ripped through the hospital's car park.
A witness said he heard a "very loud explosion".
Justice Minister Salah al-Mirghani denounced a "terrorist act" and vowed the
authorities would "do everything possible to arrest the criminals".
Mirghani also urged "unity" among Libyans as commentators noted the bombing
was the first to target civilians in Libya since the 2011 uprising that
toppled Gathafi's regime and to take place in broad daylight.
Benghazi, Libya's second city, has seen a wave of violence in recent weeks.
But previous attacks, bombings or assassinations, have rocked the city by
night or in the early hours of the day when the streets are empty, and have
hit non-civilian targets, namely security officials.
Four police stations have been bombed in Benghazi in recent days -- two on
Friday and two on Sunday -- causing damage but no casualties.
Authorities blame radical Islamists for the violence, including a deadly
attack in September against the US consulate in Benghazi that killed
Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans.
"We still don't know if this bombing targeted civilians or one particular
individual," a security official said.
The latest violence also comes days after the United States and Britain
withdrew some staff from their embassies in Tripoli citing security concerns
over a flare-up between militiamen and the authorities.
The British Council cultural agency also closed its Libyan office for a week
for the same reason, and oil giant BP said it had pulled out some
non-essential overseas staff out of the country.
Last week the United States issued a travel advisory warning against "all
travel to Benghazi" and other areas in Libya.
The militiamen, mostly former rebels who helped topple Gathafi, had
surrounded the foreign and justice ministries to press for a vote in the
national assembly barring former officials of his regime from holding
government jobs.
They lifted the siege on Sunday, ending a two-week standoff, days after the
vote was passed by the General National Congress and a pledge by Prime
Minister Ali Zeidan to reshuffle the cabinet soon.
The militiamen who helped topple Gathafi were hailed as heroes after the
uprising but since then they stand accused of many of the country's ills,
notably the instability that still plagues parts of the North African
nation.
Monday's car bombing comes three weeks after a similar attack targeted the
French embassy in Tripoli.
Two French guards and a few locals were wounded and the bombing caused
extensive damage to the embassy and private homes in a residential
neighbourhood.
It also prompted France to reduce the number of personnel at its embassy.
France and Britain led the creation of a NATO no-fly zone in Libya in 2011
when the rebellion against Gathafi began.
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Received on Mon May 13 2013 - 17:15:17 EDT
