Zliten truck bombing

Zliten truck bombing
Part of Libyan Civil War (2014–present)
Zliten is located in Libya
Zliten
Zliten
Zliten (Libya)
LocationZliten, Murqub District, Libya
Coordinates32°27′50″N 14°34′21″E / 32.46389°N 14.57250°E / 32.46389; 14.57250
Date7 January 2016
TargetPolicemen
Attack type
Suicide truck bombing
WeaponsTruck bombs
Deaths60+
Injured200+
PerpetratorsWilayat al-Barqa (ISIL), Abu al-Abbas al-Muhajir,

The Zliten truck bombing occurred on 7 January 2016, when Islamist militants detonated a truck bomb at the police training camp al-Jahfal in the coastal town of Zliten, Libya. Libyan authorities said at least 60 policemen were killed and over 200 wounded. Concrete buildings inside the compound were charred from the blast and their windows blown out; nearby cars were turned into twisted metal wrecks. The head of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya, Martin Kobler, said the blast was a suicide attack.[1][2][3][4]

Wilayat al-Barqah, a province of Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant in Libya, claimed responsibility for the attack. They said the bomber was Abu al-Abbas al-Muhajir, who detonated his explosive-laden truck among the Libyan border police at the base.[5]

This incident was the deadliest militant attack since the 2011 Libyan revolution, followed by Al Qubbah bombings which killed 40 people in February 2015.[6]

  1. ^ "Truck bomb kills nearly 50 at Libyan police academy". Reuters. 7 January 2016. Archived from the original on January 7, 2016. Retrieved 7 January 2016.
  2. ^ "Libya truck bomb targets police recruits in Zliten". BBC News. 7 January 2016. Retrieved 7 January 2016.
  3. ^ "Dozens killed in bomb attack on Libyan police academy". Al Jazeera. 7 January 2016. Retrieved 7 January 2016.
  4. ^ "More than 50 dead in bombing at Libya police school". AFP. 7 January 2016. Retrieved 7 January 2016.
  5. ^ "An Islamic State affiliate claims credit for Libya attack". Associated Press. 8 January 2016. Retrieved 8 January 2016.
  6. ^ "Egypt 'strongly condemns' suicide attack on Libyan police school". Al-Ahram. 7 January 2016. Retrieved 7 January 2016.