Car bomb kills Haftar intel chief in eastern Libya

The killing ⁠highlights continuing security challenges ‌in Libya, where ‌rival administrations and ​armed groups ‌have retained influence despite a 2020 ‌ceasefire that halted major warfare. (Supplied)

• The LNA did not identify those behind the killing, describing it as “a cowardly and criminal act“
• “We will not cease fighting terrorism and will continue our struggle for the stability and security of Libya”

TRIPOLI: The head of military intelligence for the Libyan National Army (LNA), which controls the east and parts of southern Libya, has been killed in a car bombing, the army said in a statement Tuesday.
Fawzi Al-Mansouri was assassinated Monday after an explosive stuck to his car detonated when he was leaving a local mosque at night, the statement said.
Reports said the killing occurred in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi.
The North African country has remained divided ever since it plunged into war during the ousting in 2011 of former leader Muammar Qaddafi.
Two governments are currently vying for power: the UN-recognized administration in Tripoli led by Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah and a rival in Benghazi backed by military commander and LNA chief Khalifa Haftar.
The LNA did not identify those behind the killing, describing it as “a cowardly and criminal act.”
“We will not cease fighting terrorism and will continue our struggle for the stability and security of Libya, as well as for the unification of its institutions,” the statement added.
Al-Mansouri was a prominent military leader with close ties to the Haftar family.
He played a key role in the LNA’s fighting against jihadist groups, including the Islamic State, between 2014 and 2017 in parts of the country’s east.
He was also a leading figure during Haftar’s Russia-backed offensive to seize Tripoli in 2019, which was thwarted by forces in the capital with the support of Turkiye.