Rival Libya militias clash near security building, explosion in Benghazi

Rival armed militias clashed outside Libya's Supreme Security Committee headquarters in central Tripoli on Sunday and the building was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade, a Reuters witness said.   

Haitham Ben Nour, a doctor at a nearby hospital, said he had received at least five casualties from the fighting which began in the early hours of Sunday.   

Ben Nour said gunfire had also damaged parts of the hospital.

Earlier, a car bomb exploded on in front of a police station in Benghazi, injuring three police officers in the latest in a series of attacks on security officials in Libya's second largest city.   

The front of the central Hadayeq police station was charred and blackened with smoke. The entrance to the station was completely damaged, with glass strewn on the street and firefighters putting out a damaged police car that was on fire.   

A Reuters photographer saw three policemen receive first aid for small injuries in front of the station. Officials at the scene said there were no deaths.   

A policeman who refused to be identified said the explosion went off when a homemade bomb was attached to the bottom of a parked police car in front of the station.    

The Libyan government is struggling to control armed individuals and militias that gained power during an armed conflict that ousted Muammar Gaddafi last year. Benghazi was the birthplace of the revolt.  

Benghazi has been hit by several bombings and attacks this year on international convoys and official buildings, the worst of which led to the death of the U.S. ambassador in September.   

In early September, a Libyan intelligence officer was killed and another wounded when their car exploded as they stopped to buy cigarettes in  a busy shopping district.


REUTERS