Twin Car Bombs Leave Scores of Casualties in Benghazi

Smoke billows during clashes on July 23, 2014, in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi. (AFP Photo/Abdullah Doma)
Smoke billows during clashes on July 23, 2014, in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi. (AFP Photo/Abdullah Doma)
TT

Twin Car Bombs Leave Scores of Casualties in Benghazi

Smoke billows during clashes on July 23, 2014, in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi. (AFP Photo/Abdullah Doma)
Smoke billows during clashes on July 23, 2014, in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi. (AFP Photo/Abdullah Doma)

The death toll following a double car bomb attack in the Libyan city of Benghazi on Tuesday night has risen to at least 33, officials said.

Ahmad al-Fitouri, a security services official for commander of the Libyan National Army (LNA) Khalifa Haftar's forces, was among those killed in the bombing, military spokesman Miloud al-Zwei said.

A senior intelligence official, Mahdi al-Fellah, was among around 50 wounded, the officials said.

An explosives-rigged vehicle blew up in front of a mosque in the central neighborhood of Al-Sleimani, a security source said.

A second car exploded 30 minutes later in the same area, causing more casualties among security services and civilians.

Libya has been rocked by chaos since a 2011 uprising that toppled and killed Muammar Gaddafi, with two rival authorities and multiple militias vying for control of the oil-rich country.



Blinken Speaks to Israel’s Dermer about Humanitarian Situation in Gaza

 A man sits on rubble of a house destroyed in an Israeli strike at the Nuseirat refugee camp, central Gaza Strip, on November 12, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas. (AFP)
A man sits on rubble of a house destroyed in an Israeli strike at the Nuseirat refugee camp, central Gaza Strip, on November 12, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas. (AFP)
TT

Blinken Speaks to Israel’s Dermer about Humanitarian Situation in Gaza

 A man sits on rubble of a house destroyed in an Israeli strike at the Nuseirat refugee camp, central Gaza Strip, on November 12, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas. (AFP)
A man sits on rubble of a house destroyed in an Israeli strike at the Nuseirat refugee camp, central Gaza Strip, on November 12, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas. (AFP)

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken emphasized the importance of improving the humanitarian situation in Gaza in a meeting with Israeli Minister of Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer in Washington on Monday, the State Department said.

Dermer updated Blinken on operational changes and policy decisions taken by Israel in response to a US letter sent in October, the department said in a statement on Tuesday.

Blinken "emphasized the importance of ensuring those changes lead to an actual improvement in the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza, including through the delivery of additional assistance to civilians throughout Gaza," State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said in the statement.