Car bomb kills 2 UN staffers in Libya’s Benghazi

A car bomb explosion in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi has left two UN staffers dead and several others wounded.

The blast occurred in a shopping area of the al-Hawari district as a UN convoy was passing through on Saturday.

There has been no immediate claim of responsibility for the blast so far.

Ahmed Mismari, the eastern-based Libyan National Army (LNA) spokesman, told reporters the two victims were with the United Nations Libya mission (UNSMIL). He added that ten people had been wounded, among them children.

Around the time of the blast, LNA commander Khalifa Haftar, announced a halt to military operations during the Muslim Eid al-Adha holiday, which lasts from Saturday until Tuesday, according to a statement from his forces in Benghazi.

The UN is trying to broker a truce in the capital Tripoli, where the LNA launched a surprise attack in April.

Heading a group of militias, Haftar launched an offensive on Tripoli on April 4 to wrest control of the capital, but his armed groups failed to breach the southern defenses of the city.

Since then, the fighting has left at least 1,100 people dead, more than 5,750 wounded, and over 100,000 people displaced, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

SS