Libya: 4 killed in rocket attacks by Haftar militias

TRIPOLI, Libya

Militias loyal to East Libya-based commander Khalifa Haftar launched rocket attacks Wednesday on the capital, killing four civilians.

Three children from the same family were killed in the first attack in southern Tripoli’s Ain Zara suburb, according to the Health Ministry under the UN-recognized Government of National Accord (GNA).

One woman was killed later the same day in the capital’s Bab Bin Ghashir district when a rocket struck her car, also wounding her daughter and niece, according to a statement by the GNA’s Volcano of Rage Operation.

Heavy fighting between GNA forces and Haftar militias has been ongoing since early Wednesday.

Since the ouster of late ruler Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, two seats of power have emerged in Libya: Haftar in eastern Libya, supported mainly by Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, and the GNA in Tripoli, which enjoys UN and international recognition.

The GNA has been under attack by Haftar’s forces since last April, with more than 1,000 people killed in the violence.

*Writing by Firdevs Bulut