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By Libya Herald reporter.
Tunis, 15 February 2017:
Celebrations in Beida to mark the sixth anniversary of the 2011 revolution have been cancelled because of security fears. The local municipal council say the order was made to prevent any acts of violence that might be committed at Friday’s event.
One report says the decision was based on intelligence warnings of a planned terrorist attack. The security alert in the town has been lifted to its highest level.
The mayor of Beida, Ali Hussein, said festivities would have to be postponed until some form of stability had returned to Libya. In a letter sent to those who had been organising festivities, he insisted his decision was motivated purely by security considerations.
The announcement follows a second attempted raid on the home in Beida of the Libyan National Army’s former Derna Operation Room commander Faraj Al-Barasi on Tuesday night. Some reports allege the gunmen were linked to Salafist groups, although it is more generally believed that they were connected to the LNA.
There are Salafist Madkhali units working within the LNA.
Whoever was responsible, the attackers are said to have come under heavy fire from Barasi’s entourage. One was reported killed.
On Monday, the military leader had his home raided by armed men on the same day he resigned from the LNA.
Also, unknown gunmen were reported to have broken into the Beida home of former General National Congress deputy president Ezzeddin Al-Awami. It is thought, however, that robbery may have been the reason.
Until now, Beida has been a bastion of calm and order in Libya. With the order, Mayor Hussein apparently is determined to keep it that way.
