4 Killed As Army Supporters, Militias Clash İn Benghazi

Four people were killed and a number of others injured in Thursday clashes between armed pro-army protesters and members of Libya's Islamist Ansar al-Sharia militia in Benghazi's Zouaoua neighborhood.



A Libyan health official said the dead and injured had been brought to the Benghazi Medical Center.



He said the pro-army protesters belonged to the self-styled "October 15 Armed Uprising," a demonstration of support for the Libyan army in its ongoing showdown with Islamist militias in the flashpoint city.



The clashes, which erupted in Zouaoua on Thursday morning, subsided following appeals for calm from a local mosque.



Thursday's violence erupted after armed pro-army protesters attacked the home of a leading Ansar al-Sharia member in Zouaoua, eyewitnesses told Anadolu Agency.



Following the attack, witnesses said, the militia member had appealed to colleagues for reinforcements, eventually leading to clashes between the two sides.



Pro-army protesters, eyewitnesses said, had attacked the militiaman's home after confirming that large numbers of weapons had been stored inside.



Since last week, clashes have raged in Benghazi between forces loyal to former army chief-of-staff Khalifa Haftar and Islamist militiamen, who in recent months have vied for control of the volatile city.



Earlier this week, pro-army protesters announced the launch of an "armed uprising" against "extremist Islamist groups" in Benghazi.



Early this year, Haftar declared war on Islamist militias based in eastern Libya with the stated aim of "purging" the country of "extremists."



After serving as army chief-of-staff under Muammar Gaddafi, Haftar spent nearly two decades in exile in the U.S. before returning to Libya in 2011 to join the uprising against the autocratic ruler.



Libya has been dogged by instability since Gaddafi's 2011 ouster and death, with several militias who helped overthrow the strongman refusing to lay down their arms.



By Moataz al-Majbari



englishnews@aa.com.tr



www.aa.com.tr/en - Bingazi