This Article is From Jul 06, 2014

Libya Car Bomb Kills Commando in the East

Cairo, Egypt: A car bomb killed a Libyan commando Saturday and injured his two-year-old son in the country's restive east, a Libyan security official said.

The official said unidentified assailants had planted an explosive device in the commando's vehicle which blew up while he was driving in the eastern city of Benghazi. His son was wounded in the hand and the face, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to brief reporters.

The Libyan interior ministry said 17 military, police and clerics were killed by gunmen in Benghazi over the past week.

Benghazi, the birthplace of the 2011 uprising which led to the downfall of longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi, has since witnessed a series of attacks, assassinations and bombings targeting military and police who had served under the ousted ruler.

Last week, prominent Libyan activist Salwa Bugaighis was assassinated by gunmen who stormed her home in Benghazi. Bugaighis was also an outspoken critic of militiamen and Islamic extremists.

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