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By Moutaz Ahmed.
Benghazi, 2 October 2014:
At least seven have been killed in a double suicide bombing and its follow-up attack near Benina . . .[restrict]airbase, according to initial reports.
Unconfirmed estimates have put the number of injured in the attack at 52. These casualties appear to be mostly from Saiqa Special Forces and other Operation Dignity personnel holding the airport.
It is reported that two suicide bombers detonated separate explosive devices at Benina this morning, killing three in the initial blasts. While the precise circumstances of the bombings remain unclear there has been speculation that an ambulance was used to disguise one of the car-bombs and gain access to the airbase.
The suicide attack was apparently the opening salvo in a larger-scale assault and was followed up by ground forces. Four have been killed in the ensuing clashes. It is unclear whether the fighting has continued.
Benina Airport and a nearby air defence unit base are the last remaining positions held by Operation Dignity near to Benghazi. The airport and its approach, including the nearby residential area of Buatni, have become the backdrop to some of the worst violence in Benghazi over the last three months as Ansar Al-Sharia and its allies have made a series of attacks on the Operation Dignity forces there.
Comments on the Facebook page of the Rafallah Al-Sahati Brigade, part of the Benghazi Revolutionaries Shoura Council and closely linked to Ansar Al-Sharia, while not specifically claiming responsibility for the attack indicate strong support for it. [/restrict]
