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By Adam Ali.
Benghazi, 23 October 2014:
The bodies of five members of pro-government forces battling Benghazi Revolutionaries Shoura Council (BRSC) were taken to Benghazi . . .[restrict]Medical Centre (BMC) as fighting continued in the city into its eighth day.
Medical staff at the BMC told the Libya Herald that the five were killed in clashes in Ard Zwawa and Garyounis not far from the 17 February Brigade base which Operation Dignity claimed to have pacified over one week ago.
Residents in the area said heavy clashes and several large explosions could be heard nearby from the early hours of this morning, with most roads in and out of the area closed by roadblocks.
One of the dead men has been identified as Munier Saidi, an army lieutenant. The names of the other four have not yet been released but they are believed to have been members of 204 Tank Battalion which joined the Libyan National Army’s bid to smash the militants when they entered Benghazi on Wednesday last week.
Elsewhere in Benghazi, the violence has also continued. Medics at the BMC reported that the victim of a suicide bombing in Dryana, just outside of Benghazi, had been brought into the hospital. The bomber and the individual in question were the only casualties of the attack.
The LNA also last night carried out airstrikes on targets in Buatni, again an area it had claimed to have complete control over. In the immediate aftermath of initial fighting in Benghazi last week Operation Dignity leader General Khalifa Hafter toured Buatni and Benina Airport.
The Libyan Red Crescent has continued its work of recovering those killed during fighting across the city. A spokesman for the organisation told this newspaper that five further bodies had been recovered – three from the Makron area and two from Gwarsha. They have been taken to the BMC for identification.
The Red Crescent has also been involved in evacuating more foreign workers out of areas affected by clashes. The organisation reported that it had evacuated 26 Indian, Filipino and Bangladeshi medical workers from areas around Venicia Street.
The targeted assassination of individuals in Benghazi has also continued. A former Security Directorate employee, who has not been identified, was killed in his office on Vetrino street. He has not been identified.
With the exception of combatants, Benghazi has become largely deserted for long portions of the day. From 6 pm onwards it is unusual to see a single civilian outside of their homes and each area is now blockaded with makeshift roadblocks formed of sand, cars – or whatever else might be immediately available. [/restrict]
