At least eleven Libyans were killed and scores wounded in clashes on Wednesday when ex-rebels linked to the army attacked Bani Walid, a former bastion of dictator Muammar Gaddafi, local sources said.
“Clashes today left four dead and 19 wounded in the ranks of Libya Shield,” said a commander of the brigade which operates under the banner of the army.
The deputy director of Bani Walid’s hospital, Abdullah al-Mansuri, said that his facility had received another “seven dead people and 75 wounded, including a 14-year-old girl.”
“Bani Walid was shelled from three fronts today,” said Massud al-Waer, a local official in Bani Walid. Dozens of residents were wounded in the assault, he said.
The attack came exactly one year after former rebels declared the liberation of Bani Walid, which remained loyal to the long-time leader throughout the last year conflict that led to his ouster and death.
Rebels defeated Bani Walid fighters loyal to the former regime on October 17, last year - just three days before Kadhafi was captured and killed in his hometown of Sirte.
But many Libyans feel Bani Walid, 170 kilometres southeast of Tripoli, was never truly “liberated” and see it as a shelter for regime loyalists and criminal gangs.
