BENGHAZI, Libya (AP) — At least two Libyan protesters were killed and dozens wounded early Saturday as hundreds of demonstrators attacked militia compounds in a surge of anger at armed groups in Benghazi that refuse to disarm and submit to the authority of the government.
For many Libyans, the attack on the United States Consulate in Benghazi on Sept. 11 was the last straw in one of the biggest problems Libya has faced since the ouster and death last year of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi: the multiple mini-armies armed with machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades that are stronger than government security forces.
But in an indication of government fears of a sudden security vacuum without the militias it relies on to keep order, officials called on protesters to respect “legitimate” militias.
While the protests on Friday were planned using social networking sites and fliers, the storming of heavily armed militia headquarters took many by surprise. After breaking off from a huge anti-militia march — the biggest in Benghazi since the fall of Colonel Qaddafi last October — protesters overtook a building used by the Islamist militia Ansar al-Sharia and set fire to a vehicle and offices after freeing three detainees held in an underground cell. Ansar al-Sharia has been linked to the attack on the American Consulate.
Protesters, some carrying guns and others machetes, moved to another heavily armed compound on Benghazi’s outskirts that houses a pro-government militia, Rafallah al-Sehati.
Responding to that attack, Libyan government officials urged protesters to differentiate between what it called “legitimate and nonlegitimate” militias.
The militias, a legacy of the ragtag popular forces that fought Colonel Qaddafi’s government, promote themselves as protectors of Libya’s revolution, providing security where the police cannot. But they now face public criticism and are accused of acting like gangs.
The Libyan military’s chief of staff, Youssef al-Mangoush, said three big militias — Rafallah al-Sehati, Feb. 17 and Libya Shield — are considered “pro-government,” and he warned protesters against pushing for what he described as “counterrevolution” goals. The government relied on Rafallah al-Sehati, for example, to secure Benghazi during the elections in July.
But most of Libya’s militias still answer to their commanders before the state. Protesters want the fighters to be trained outside Benghazi and follow state army orders as individual soldiers and not as part of a militia. Mohammed al-Megarif, the leader of Libya’s General National Congress, ordered protesters not to attack militias that were “under state legitimacy, and go home.” Nearly seven hours of clashes ended shortly after he made his statement, which was broadcast on Libyan television.
Mohammed al-Fakhri, the manager of a hospital in Benghazi, said two young men were killed and about 30 were wounded in the clashes.
Some news reports put the number of dead at four, but it was not immediately possible to confirm that.
For many Libyans, the attack on the United States Consulate in Benghazi on Sept. 11 was the last straw in one of the biggest problems Libya has faced since the ouster and death last year of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi: the multiple mini-armies armed with machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades that are stronger than government security forces.
But in an indication of government fears of a sudden security vacuum without the militias it relies on to keep order, officials called on protesters to respect “legitimate” militias.
While the protests on Friday were planned using social networking sites and fliers, the storming of heavily armed militia headquarters took many by surprise. After breaking off from a huge anti-militia march — the biggest in Benghazi since the fall of Colonel Qaddafi last October — protesters overtook a building used by the Islamist militia Ansar al-Sharia and set fire to a vehicle and offices after freeing three detainees held in an underground cell. Ansar al-Sharia has been linked to the attack on the American Consulate.
Protesters, some carrying guns and others machetes, moved to another heavily armed compound on Benghazi’s outskirts that houses a pro-government militia, Rafallah al-Sehati.
Responding to that attack, Libyan government officials urged protesters to differentiate between what it called “legitimate and nonlegitimate” militias.
The militias, a legacy of the ragtag popular forces that fought Colonel Qaddafi’s government, promote themselves as protectors of Libya’s revolution, providing security where the police cannot. But they now face public criticism and are accused of acting like gangs.
The Libyan military’s chief of staff, Youssef al-Mangoush, said three big militias — Rafallah al-Sehati, Feb. 17 and Libya Shield — are considered “pro-government,” and he warned protesters against pushing for what he described as “counterrevolution” goals. The government relied on Rafallah al-Sehati, for example, to secure Benghazi during the elections in July.
But most of Libya’s militias still answer to their commanders before the state. Protesters want the fighters to be trained outside Benghazi and follow state army orders as individual soldiers and not as part of a militia. Mohammed al-Megarif, the leader of Libya’s General National Congress, ordered protesters not to attack militias that were “under state legitimacy, and go home.” Nearly seven hours of clashes ended shortly after he made his statement, which was broadcast on Libyan television.
Mohammed al-Fakhri, the manager of a hospital in Benghazi, said two young men were killed and about 30 were wounded in the clashes.
Some news reports put the number of dead at four, but it was not immediately possible to confirm that.