Car bomb explodes outside Libyan hospital

Posted May 14, 2013 07:29:56

A car bomb has exploded outside a hospital in the Libyan city of Benghazi, reportedly killing several people.

The blast, which destroyed a restaurant and damaged cars and buildings, happened near the Al-Jala hospital in the centre of the northern city.

The death toll is still unclear. Officials in Benghazi and Tripoli have given varying figures because their security agencies are poorly run and coordinated.

Deputy interior minister Abdullah Massoud, citing "preliminary" figures, said 15 people were killed and another 30 wounded.

But health ministry spokesman Salah Abdeldayem later told AFP 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 the bombing killed 13 people and wounded 41.

A local security official in Benghazi said the bomb was detonated by remote control.

But he also said weapons, including an assault rifle, were found in the car.

Justice minister Salah al-Mirghani denounced the "terrorist act" and vowed authorities would "do everything possible to arrest the criminals".

It remains unclear who was behind the bomb, but many locals at the scene blamed militiamen for the attack.

The militiamen who toppled long-time dictator Moamar Gaddafi still run much of the security in Libya.

They were hailed as heroes after the uprising but they now stand accused of many of Libya's ills, notably its instability.


Topics: terrorism, unrest-conflict-and-war, libyan-arab-jamahiriya