By Libya Herald reporters.
Benghazi, 23 October 2015:
The death toll from the mortar attack on demonstrators in Benghazi’s Kish Square today has . . .[restrict]risen to nine with 35 people injured, some of them seriously.
The United Nations Support Mission in Libya, the main focus of the protest, has tonight condemned the murders and reiterated its message that only political unity will enable Libya to tackle terrorism.
British ambassador Peter Millett described the terrorist assault as “heinous”. He added “ Such vicious and repellent attacks underline the urgent need for peace in Libya. By working towards Libyan unity, terrorism can be confronted and violence brought to an end”.
Even as the dead and wounded were being removed by ambulances which had already been standing by, the now furious crowd of maybe up to two thousand, continued to chant against UNSMIL which it accused of backing the Muslim Brotherhood and by extension, terrorism. One refrain was “Today, Today, Leon go away”. The cry also went up for the removal of the UN arms embargo so that the army could have the means to take on the terrorists.
Police are claiming that the mortar rounds were fired from districts still held by IS terrorists in the south west of the city. Russian-built 88mm mortars have a range of over four kilometres though an army source has suggested that the deadly blasts were caused by the more powerful 120mm M-43 mortars. [/restrict]
