Thursday, January 07, 2016

Libya truck bomb targets police recruits in Zliten

At least 47 people have been killed by a truck bomb targeting a police training centre in the western Libyan city of Zliten, reports say.
Media in Libya said the attack struck the al-Jahfal training camp.
The training centre had been a military base during the rule of ousted Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.
Libya has been hit by instability since his overthrow in 2011, and there is concern Islamic State (IS) militants are gaining a foothold there.
The country has been run by two governments - only one of which is recognised by the international community.
A spokesman for the ministry of health of the rival government based in the capital, Tripoli, told the BBC that 47 people were killed and more than 100 people were injured in the blast, which was reportedly heard 60km (40 miles) away in Misrata.
Other news agencies have put the death toll at 50.
It is being reported that it was a water truck rigged with explosives which caused the bombing
State of emergency
The ministry of health has declared a state of emergency and called on all hospitals in Tripoli, 160km (100 miles) to the west of Zliten, and Misrata to the east, to prepare to take in casualties.
Residents in Zliten have told the BBC that dozens of people are being transferred to Tripoli, as the hospital in Zliten is struggling to cope with the number of people injured.
Urgent calls for blood donations are being made to Zliten residents, the Lana news agency reports.
The BBC's North Africa correspondent Rana Jawad says no-one has claimed responsibility for the latest attack, but there have been reports in recent months that IS affiliates are operating in that area.
The UN Special Representative to Libya, Martin Kobler, said that the blast was a suicide attack .
Libyan media said hundreds of recruits were outside performing morning exercises when the centre was targeted.
Libya's al-Naba television network quoted the ministry of health of the rival rebel-led government as saying that a state of emergency had been declared, allowing hospitals in Tripoli and Misrata to receive the wounded.
In December, the country's rival politicians signed a UN-brokered deal to form a unity government, but that has not yet been implemented.

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