Nine people have died in an explosion at a military camp in the city of Zawiya, western Libya, the Libyan Emergency and Disaster Management Service reported. The incident occurred on the evening of October 18 in the Al Harsha area, during a military training.
According to the service, an 82-millimeter mortar exploded. There are also injured people, but their exact number and condition are not clear. The cause of the detonation has also not been established, and as of the publication of the latest reports, there is no official explanation for how the explosion occurred.
Initially, Libya Press reported seven dead in the explosion at the “Radar“ camp in Al Harsha. According to the media, the victims were part of formations subordinate to Mohammed Bahroun, head of the Security Threat Countermeasures Service. A person in charge of prisons under Bahroun's control was also reported to have been seriously injured.
Earlier Libyan media reports had given different numbers of victims - three, five and eight. This shows that information about the scale of the incident had changed in the hours after the explosion. The latest official estimate, quoted by the Libyan Emergency Services, was for nine dead.
“A grave tragedy and painful loss for the city of Zawiya“, said the Libyan Emergency Services.Zawiya is located about 60 kilometers west of the capital Tripoli. The city and its surroundings are among the areas in western Libya where various armed groups operate. There are no reports of civilian casualties or subsequent clashes following the explosion.
Sources: elbalad.news, dailybaku.az, alwasat.ly