Libyan Special Forces fought with armed protesters in Benghazi in clashes that killed six soldiers, officials report. The flashpoint city has been hit by a wave of bloody protests recently demanding the disbandment of militia groups.
Violence erupted during Friday night and continued into the
morning with witness reports of explosions and heavy gunfire
throughout the city.
"The clashes lasted from 2am (00:00 GMT) until 6am, but are over
now," Colonel Mohammed Sharif, of the Special Forces in
Benghazi, told Reuters. The six soldiers were killed in clashes
with armed protesters outside a military base in the city.
Prior to the clashes a group of enraged protesters stormed a
former militia base on Friday evening, ejecting a brigade of
rebel fighters. Officials say the demonstrators also torched two
military vehicles in the process.
Tensions have been escalating in Benghazi between the population
and the various militia groups left behind after they aided in
the ouster of Colonel Gaddafi in 2011. Last week, at least 31
people were killed in clashes after members of the militia group,
the Libyan Shield Brigade opened fire on protesters demonstrating
outside their base.
The army's Thunderbolt Special Forces brigade arrived to impose
order, but was sucked into the violence.
"The Libya Shield don't follow orders, we don't even know whose
orders they follow," said Thunderbolt Brigade lieutenant Said
Alari to The Guardian.
Following the unrest, the Libyan interim government ordered the
seizure of four Islamist militia bases around Benghazi. However,
very few believe the militia will willingly disband.
‘Bloodbath’
On Friday evening, the interim head of the army, Salem Konidi,
warned on state TV that if Libyan Special Forces were attacked,
“there will be a bloodbath.”
"There could be a catastrophe in Benghazi,” he said and
urged the city authorities to act to reign in the situation
before it gets out of hand.
Libya’s interim government has failed to bring the country’s many
militia groups to heel over the last two years following the
removal of Gaddafi. The militia groups are often heavily armed
and enforce their authority in the rural communities where they
have entrenched themselves.
The militia groups have slammed the interim government for
employing former Gaddafi officials. Back in March, militias laid
siege to the congress with pickup trucks mounted with machine
guns. The blockaded the building and held members of the General
National Congress (GNC) – the legislative authority of Libya –
inside parliament for hours.