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By Moutaz Ali.
Tripoli, 7 November 2016:
Five people died as a result of clashes which erupted this morning in Tripoli’s western suburb of Siyahiya as a result a over a quarrel between Misratan and Amazigh militiamen queuing at at a local money transfer agency.
As a result of the clashes, residents in Siyahiya, fearing further violence, blocked the streets.
The fighting happened after a money transfer agency in Siyahiya said it would start accepting applications to transfer dinars to dollars on 6 and 7 November, and at the official rate of LD 1.39 to the dollar.
The black market rate in Tripoli is LD 5.24.an
In the event, the currency dealers, licensed by the Central Bank of Libya, opened for transactions only today.
According to eyewitness who spoke to the Libya Herald, the incident started when two individuals who were queuing, both militiamen, one a Misratan and the other from Jadu, exchanged insults. As a result, the one from Jadu went to his nearby house for his gun and then shot at the Misratan.
Almost all of those who died were militiamen.
The Misratan Bader Brigade took over the western part of the seaside Regatta beachside resort developed by Hannibal Qaddafi from Zintani forces two years ago.
People from Jadu and other Amazigh towns in western Libya have been resident in Siyahiya and elsewhere in west Tripoli for many years.
Amid the fighting, the money exchange office was set on fire and seriously damaged as were a number of other nearby buildings. Thieves meanwhile sacked a furniture showroom on the same street.
