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By Libya Herald staff
Tripoli, 28 November 2013:
At least ten people have been killed and around 20 injured in what appears to . . .[restrict]have been a substantial blast in a weapons store at the Brak Al-Shatti airbase to the north of Sebha.
It has been reported that tank ammunition was being stolen when the explosion occurred. If this is correct, today’s crime will be the latest in a series of raids that have resulted in the theft of arms and ammunition from the airbase. The base commander, Colonel Ahmed Al-Hasnawi, who is also the commander of Brigade 144, could not be contacted this evening for comment. However, there are reports from inside that as many as 30 people could have been killed in the explosion.
National television quoted one of the injured as saying that they had been trying to steal copper wire. While that may be true, the Brak Al-Shatti ammunition dumps have been hit a number of times by thieves.
Only last Saturday, a large body of men raided the facility. After the attack, Hasnawi told the Libya Herald: “Dozens of gunmen stormed the air base and looted all the ammunition inside the storage, including ammunition for heavy weapons such as rockets and artillery.”
Hasnawi said of last week’s looting that the raiders had had accomplices within the unit tasked with the guarding of the base.
With contributions from Ashraf Abdul Wahab and Ahmed Elumami. [/restrict]
