By Adam Ali.
Benghazi, 10 October 2014:
One man has been killed and two others injured in an explosion outside Benghazi’s Tibesti Hotel, . . .[restrict]a focal point for demonstrations in the city since the revolution.
Staff at Benghazi Medical Centre (BMC) identified the dead man as Abdullah Al-Sharia. The names of theother two individuals receiving treatment at the hospital have not been released.
Burning debris and car parts littered the area where the explosion took place. Security officials have not yet ascertained the cause of the blast.
The use of plastic explosive devices attached to cars has become commonplace over the past year. However last week, suicide bombers used cars loaded with explosives to attack Benina Airbase.
Large protests had been held regularly in the open area by the Tibesti Hotel. They have tended to be anti-Islamist in character and in opposition to the General National Congress (GNC). They have sometimes resulted in protestors being attacked and even killed, such as a year ago when gunmen opened fire on demonstrators. The following month a bomb was thrown at anti-Ansar Al-Sharia protestors outside the Tibesti.
In recent months, in the face of escalating violence in Benghazi, these Friday protests have been ever more sparsely attended.
There had been calls on social media for protests in Benghazi today with further protests planned for 15 October. However, whether these will gather support remains to be seen. Initial reports have indicated that those caught up in this afternoon’s blasts were not taking part in any demonstrations and were merely bystanders. [/restrict]
