State of alert declared in Benghazi
By Ahmed Elumami.
Tripoli, 28 February 2014:
The Prime Ministry has declared a state of alert in Benghazi in response to ongoing security issues in the city.
Measures to enhance security will be taken over the next few days, according to a statement on the government’s official website. The announcement followed a meeting of the crisis committee yesterday, which focused on Benghazi. The committee would be meeting in Benghazi next week, the government said, to oversee the implementation of its plans to enhance security.
In a televised press conference last night, the head of Benghazi Local Council, Mahmoud Abu Raziza, gave the General National Congress (GNC) and the government seven days to address deteriorating security in the city.
“Although we have given the government a week to address the security problems in Benghazi, they shouldn’t need this long,” Abu Raziza told the Libya Herald. “They should be able to start taking emergency measures within a matter of hours.”
If the government failed to adequately respond to the demand, he said, the revenue generated from Benghazi state institutions would be withheld from government accounts. The money would instead be redirected to the Benghazi Joint Security Room (BJSR) which is so short of funds it is unable to do its job improving security conditions in the city, Abu Raziza said.
The local council and BJSR continued to hold urgent meetings to follow the situation closely, he added.
The government’s sustained inability to address the almost daily assassinations of security personnel in the city provoked protests and road blockades on Wednesday. Local people came out to demonstrate against what they said was the government’s total neglect of the city.
More demonstrations in Benghazi over ongoing killings
By Libya Herald staff.
A roadblock in Benghazi this evening (Photo: Leonard Powell)
Benghazi, 28 February 2014:
Local residents again took to the streets of Benghazi today to protest against ongoing assassinations and the general deteriorating security situation in the city.
Angry demonstrators gathered outside the Tibesti Hotel, carrying banners and chanting, with dissatisfaction focusing on the lack of government action in tackling bombings and systematic assassinations that have plagued the city for over a year. Protestors said that, although men of Benghazi were being killed on a daily basis, the General National Congress (GNC) and the government did nothing except release statements condemning the attacks.
They called for the activation of the army and police force to implement proper security measures and put an end to criminal activities in the city. Some protestors spoke out against the Muslim Brotherhood and Ansar Al-Sharia, the latter of which some claim are behind the ongoing assassinations in the city.
There was also criticism of Benghazi’s Special Forces, which some said should be doing more to fight extremist elements and curb attacks in the city.
“We are disappointed to not see the Special Forces on the streets fighting extremists but we understand because they have Bukhamada’s son,” one said, in reference to the kidnap of Special Forces Commander Wanis Bukhamada’s son in January. The protestor suggested that the Special Forces, which is widely seen as one of Benghazi’s strongest weapons against criminal gangs, should have a different commander until Bukhamada’s son was released.
Other groups of protestors spoke out in support of General Khalifa Hafter, reportedly going to a house belonging to him and calling on him to make a speech. They urged him to take the lead and implement his road-map which, when he announced it earlier in the month, was misconstrued as a coup. He later described it as “a correction to the path of the revolution.”
Addressing the crowds, Hafter said that he had a security plan for Benghazi. In what smacked of a repetition of his previous and, it transpired, unsubstantiated claims with regard to Tripoli, he said he had armed units under his command that would mobilise when instructed. He added that GNC members and even Prime Minister Ali Zeidan would be arrested if they came to Benghazi.
Although Hafter has some support in the East, his ideas and threats are widely seen as having no foundation, particularly after the “coup” attempt in Tripoli.
A counter-protest was reported in the city’s Liberty Square, where a different set of people denounced Hafter and gave their support to the extension of the GNC.
Anti-GNC and government protestors marched around central Benghazi before returning to the Tibesti where, this evening, the road remained closed with at least 100 people were still demonstrating.
Tripoli residents today congregated in Algeria Square in a demonstration declaring the capital’s solidarity with Benghazi. The protestors demanded that the Libyan authorities take swift and serious action to stop the ongoing violence and assignations in Benghazi, according to Libyan news agency LANA.
Today’s action in Benghazi followed protests on Wednesday, where roads were closed and blocked with burning tyres, and partial strikes yesterday, which left many schools and shops closed. These demonstrations were also against the government and its lack of response to killings in the city.
Misratan forces impose curfew in Sebha
By Jamal Adel.
Tripoli, 27 February 2014:
A curfew is being imposed in Sebha as part of efforts by the Misratan-led Southern Operations Room (SOR) to overcome tribal violence in and around the town.
The curfew will run from 10pm to 7am, spokesman for SOR Ala Al-Huwaik told the Libya Herald. It was announced two days ago but was yet to implemented, he said. “We want enough time to pass for word to spread so that residents can cooperate. Also we need to coordinate with individuals who work at night, such as pharmacy staff, offering them protection.”
The decision was made to prevent security threats and potential violence caused by those who wish to disturb the peace, Huwaik said.
Misratan forces entered Sebha just over a month ago to act as a buffer between clashing Tebu and Awlad Suleiman tribesmen. Fighting between the two groups left over 100 dead and destabilised the region allowing Qaddafi loyalists to gain a foothold at the nearby Tamerhint Airbase.
Protestors storm Benghazi Ministry of Defence building
By Aimen Amzein.
Benghazi, 27 February 2014:
The Ministry of Defence building in Benghazi was stormed last night and several rooms set alight amidst protests against deteriorating security conditions in the city.
An MOD employee told the Libya Herald that the men who attacked the premises, between 10 and 11pm, were the same people who closed the road outside with makeshift barriers and burning tyres.
A number of rooms were torched, he said, although no one was hurt. He claimed that the attackers had been searching for weapons although none were kept in the building.
Outside the offices today, traffic was moving along the main road in Benghazi’s Ghar Younes district as normal and the main MOD gates were open. Although several rooms had been gutted in the blaze, only minimal smoke damage was visible on the facade of the building.
Benghazi was the scene of multiple protests last night, as local people reacted to the killings of at least two security officials.
There have also been protests over the dire security situation in the city’s hospitals, where the safety of staff and patients is under threat.
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