‘At least 210 killed in fighting over Libya’s Benghazi’

CAIRO — At least 210 people were killed in fighting in Libya’s eastern city of Benghazi since troops loyal to the country’s elected government launched an attempt to retake the city from Islamist militias two weeks earlier, a medical official said Sunday.

The official would not identify those killed, or say whether they included government troops, indicating that the battle for control of Benghazi has not yet been settled.

The turmoil in Benghazi started when renegade Gen. Khalifa Haftar — a former Qadhafi army chief who joined the opposition decades before the uprising — launched a campaign against Islamist militias which were implicated in series of assassinations and attacks on journalists, activists, and security forces in the city.

Haftar won support among large sectors of Libyans but the army units loosely allied with him were defeated and forced to leave the city by Islamist militias.

Then, the internationally recognised government, led by Abdullah Al Thinni, joined ranks with Hifter and on October 15, launched a wide offensive to retake the city. Until then, Haftar troops had largely fought from bases outside the city.

On Sunday, a security official in Benghazi said government troops have entered a new neighbourhood in the city. The official said the troops are carrying out a wave of arrests against Islamist militias and have arrested one of their spokesmen.

Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorised to brief reporters.

Libya is witnessing one of the worst spasms of violence since the downfall of Muammar Qadhafi. Powerful militias, who had fought to bring Qadhafi down, took control of the country, challenging the authority of central government.