BENGHAZI, Libya (Reuters) - A double car bombing in the east Libyan city of Benghazi on Tuesday left at least 33 people dead and dozens more wounded, including senior security figures and civilians, officials said.

People walk near a puddle of water mixed with blood at the site of twin car bombs in Benghazi, Libya, January 24, 2018. REUTERS/Esam Omran Al-Fetori

The twin explosions shattered the relative calm that had recently returned to Libya’s second city, scene of more than three years of warfare from 2014 until late last year.

The first blast struck outside a mosque in Benghazi’s central Al Salmani district as worshippers were leaving evening prayers.

Some 10 to 15 minutes later, after security and health officials had arrived on the scene, a second, more powerful blast was detonated from a Mercedes parked on the opposite side of the street, hitting an ambulance and causing a higher number of casualties.

One of those killed was Ahmed al-Feitouri of the investigation and arrest unit attached to the general command of east Libyan security forces. A senior intelligence official, Mahdi al-Fellah, was among around 50 wounded, officials said.

The victims also included civilians, among them an Egyptian national employed in a vegetable shop in front of the mosque. Health officials said the toll could rise because some of the wounded were in critical condition.

It was not immediately clear who was responsible.

Forces loyal to eastern-based commander Khalifa Haftar prevailed in Benghazi’s conflict after protracted urban battles against Islamists and other opponents that left parts of the port city in ruins.

There were several bombings during the latter stages of the conflict targeting figures linked to Haftar’s Libyan National Army (LNA), but Tuesday’s casualty toll was far higher than usual.

The LNA claimed victory in Benghazi in July, but sporadic clashes dragged on until last month, when it took control of its rivals’ final holdout.

It has imposed strict military controls on Benghazi and other parts of eastern Libya.

The fighting in Benghazi was part of a broader conflict that developed in Libya after former ruler Muammar Gaddafi was removed from power and killed in a NATO-backed uprising in 2011.

The North African nation has had competing governments aligned with rival military factions based in Tripoli and the east since 2014.

The eastern government, which is aligned with Haftar’s LNA and opposes an internationally backed government in the capital, declared three days of mourning after Tuesday’s attack.</s>BENGHAZI, Libya: A double car bombing in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi on Tuesday left at least 11 people dead and others wounded, according to officials and a Reuters witness.

The attack happened in the Benghazi's Al Salmani district as worshippers were leaving a local mosque after prayers.</s>BENGHAZI, Libya (Reuters) - A double car bombing in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi on Tuesday left at least 11 people dead and others wounded, according to officials and a Reuters witness.

The attack happened in Benghazi’s Al Salmani district as worshippers were leaving a mosque after prayers. It was not immediately clear who was responsible.

The victims included both military personnel and civilians, officials said.

Benghazi was the scene of more than three years of conflict from 2014 until late last year, as forces loyal to eastern-based commander Khalifa Haftar battled Islamists and other opponents.

Haftar’s Libyan National Army (LNA) claimed control of their rivals’ final holdout in the port city in December. There have been occasional bomb attacks in Benghazi in recent months, often outside mosques.

The fighting in Benghazi was part of a broader conflict that developed in Libya after former ruler Muammar Gaddafi was removed from power and killed in a Nato-backed uprising in 2011.</s>BENGHAZI, Libya (Reuters) - At least 22 people were killed by a double car bombing in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi late on Tuesday, officials said.

The explosions struck in Benghazi’s central Al Salmani district as worshippers were leaving a local mosque after evening prayers.</s>At least 34 people have been killed and dozens injured in a double car bombing in Libya’s eastern city of Benghazi, according to local medical sources on Wednesday.

A car-bomb exploded outside a mosque in Benghazi’s central Al Salmani district on Tuesday evening. A second bombing struck as people gathered to help the victims of the first blast.

A medical source said 25 dead bodies were transferred to the government-run Al-Galaa hospital in Benghazi.

Nine more bodies were sent to the Benghazi Medical Center, the sources said.

According to the sources, 73 people were injured in the two bombings.

The sources expected the death toll to rise as many of the injured were in a critical condition.

Among those killed was Ahmed al-Fetouri of the investigation and arrest unit attached to the general command of East Libya-based security forces.

There was no claim of responsibility for the attack.

Libya has remained dogged by violence and chaos since 2011, when a bloody uprising led to the ouster and death of longtime President Muammar Gaddafi after more than four decades in power.

The ensuing power vacuum led to the emergence of several competing seats of government and a host of heavily-armed militia groups.</s>BENGHAZI, Libya – Libyan authorities say the death toll in a twin car bombing near a mosque in a residential area of the eastern city of Benghazi has risen to 33.

Local health official Hani Belras Ali said on Wednesday that 47 people were also wounded in the Tuesday night attack in the Salmani neighbourhood. No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack.

Benghazi police say the attackers timed the second bomb to go off as residents and medics gathered to evacuate the wounded from the first blast, aiming to cause a maximum of casualties.

The United Nations has condemned the bombings, saying that direct or indiscriminate attacks on civilians are prohibited under international humanitarian law and constitute war crimes.</s>BENGHAZI, Libya -- The death toll from a nighttime twin car bombing near a mosque in a residential area of Libya's eastern city of Benghazi rose to 33 on Wednesday, authorities said.

The Tuesday night attack, which struck the city's Salmani neighbourhood, also left 47 people wounded, local health official Hani Belras Ali said.

No group has yet claimed responsibility for the bombing, but many assumed it was the work of remnants of an Islamic State group faction largely driven out of Libya.

Benghazi police said the attackers timed the second bomb to go off as residents and medics gathered to evacuate the wounded from the first blast, aiming to cause a maximum of casualties.

Khaled Almajdoub said his brother Khalifa, a car mechanic, was killed in the second explosion after he ran out to help the wounded.

"Many people were gathering and more people left the mosque when the second blast happened, and my brother died then," said Almajdoub. "He has four daughters, no political or religious affiliation and was just a small business owner."

The United Nations has condemned the bombings, saying that direct or indiscriminate attacks on civilians are prohibited under international humanitarian law and constitute war crimes. Libya's U.N.-backed government, which is based in the capital, Tripoli, announced three days official mourning.

Neighbouring Egypt, which supports eastern Libya's strongman Khalifa Hifter, also denounced the attack, calling on the international community to "take a firm line on arms smuggling into Libya."

Hifter, a former U.S.-based Libyan opposition member who leads remnants of Libya's National Army in the east, is at odds with the Tripoli government.

Libya fell into chaos following the ouster and killing of longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi in 2011. Since 2014, the country has been split between rival governments and parliaments based in the western and eastern regions, each backed by different militias and tribes.

Islamic State fighters had established footholds amid the disorder but have been mostly driven out of the main cities.

Benghazi, however, remains a trouble spot, where bombings and attacks still occur. The city has seen fighting between forces loyal to Hifter and Islamist militia opponents.</s>BENGHAZI, Libya (Reuters) - A double car bombing in the east Libyan city of Benghazi on Tuesday left at least 22 people dead and 30 wounded, including senior security figures, according to officials and a Reuters witness.

The first explosion struck outside a mosque in Benghazi’s central Al Salmani district as worshippers were leaving evening prayers.

Some 10 to 15 minutes later, after security and health officials had arrived on the scene, a second, more powerful blast was detonated from a Mercedes parked on the opposite side of the street, hitting an ambulance and causing a higher number of casualties.

The victims included both military personnel and civilians, officials said. One of those killed was Ahmed al-Feitouri of the investigation and arrest unit attached to the general command of east Libyan security forces. An intelligence official, Mahdi al-Fellah, was wounded.

It was not immediately clear who was responsible.

Benghazi was the scene of more than three years of warfare from 2014 until late last year, as forces loyal to eastern-based commander Khalifa Haftar battled Islamists and other opponents.

There were a number of bombings during the latter stages of the conflict targeting figures linked to Haftar’s Libyan National Army (LNA).

LNA claimed control of its rivals’ final holdout in the port city in December.

The fighting in Benghazi was part of a broader conflict that developed in Libya after former ruler Muammar Gaddafi was removed from power and killed in a NATO-backed uprising in 2011.</s>Twin car bombs exploded as people left a mosque in a residential area of the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi, killing 33 and wounding many more in an attack timed to cause mass casualties among first responders, officials said.

Capt. Tarek Alkharraz, spokesman for military and police forces in Benghazi, said the first explosion went off in the Salmani neighborhood around 8:20 p.m. Tuesday and the second bomb went off a half hour later as residents and medics gathered to evacuate the wounded.

Local health official Hani Belras Ali said at least 47 people were wounded.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the bombings.

The United Nations condemned the attack on social media, saying that direct or indiscriminate attacks on civilians are prohibited under international humanitarian law and constitute war crimes.

Libya fell into chaos following the ouster and killing of longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi in 2011, and since 2014 it has been split between rival governments and parliaments based in the western and eastern regions, each backed by different militias and tribes.

Islamic State fighters had established footholds amid the disorder but have been mostly driven out of the main cities.

Benghazi remains a trouble spot, where bombings and attacks still occur. The city has seen fighting between forces loyal to local strongman Khalifa Hifter, a former U.S.-based Libyan opposition member who leads remnants of Libya's National Army in the east, and Islamist militia opponents.</s>At least 33 people have been killed and scores more wounded in a double car bomb attack in Benghazi, Libya. No group has yet claimed responsibility for the atrocities.

A vehicle packed with explosives detonated next to Al-Radwan mosque and the headquarters of the Passport Authority in Al-Sleimani neighborhood of the Libyan capital on Tuesday afternoon just as people were leaving prayers. Minutes later a second car parked on the opposite side of the street blew up, causing more casualties among security services who had rushed to the scene and civilians who gathered at the spot of the initial explosion.

The casualty tally has not yet been officially confirmed. At least 33 people died in the dual attack, while at least 50 others were injured, officials told Reuters. Local news outlets report the death toll now stands at 41 dead and 80 wounded.

The city’s al-Jala hospital said it received the corpses of at least 25 people (both civilians and military) who died in the blasts. The hospital added that it is treating another 51 patients. “Some of the injured people were critically wounded, and some of them died of injuries sustained,” a spokesperson for the health facility noted, adding that the death toll could rise.

President of the Libyan House of Representatives Aguila Saleh Issa condemned the attack and expressed his condolences to the families of the victims of the “cowardly terrorist act.”

“All Libyans have to unite, reunite, understand and reconcile in order to save their country from this mess, chaos, criminality and terrorism, which impacts all and does not exclude anyone,” he said.

In July, the Libyan National Army (LNA) led by General Khalifa Haftar announced that after more than three years of fighting it has liberated the city from several Islamist militant and jihadist cells belonging to the so-called Revolutionary Shura Council of Benghazi. Despite the claim, lawless elements continued to terrorize the city.

Since the 2011 NATO intervention in Libya, the resulting power vacuum has seen the country descend into chaos with competing groups vying for control. There are currently several centers of power in Libya, with the UN-backed Government of National Accord (GNA) in Tripoli and the one in Tobruk toward the east of the country being the most prominent.

Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL), Al-Qaeda and other terrorist and jihadist groups have also gained traction in the fractured country plagued by violent clashes between the various competing factions. While no group has yet claimed responsibility for the attacks, Member of Libya’s internationally recognized parliament, MP Khalifa al-Daghari, blamed the “defeated terrorists” for the strikes.

“The cowardly terrorist act carried out by the extremist sleeping cells in the city of Benghazi [resulted] in the killing of a number of innocent citizens in front of the largest mosques in the city,” al-Daghari said. “Extremist groups are destabilizing the city after their defeat and their expulsion from the city.”

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A double car bombing in Benghazi, Libya, kills at least 33 people and wounds "dozens" of others. The victims include both military personnel and civilians, according to local officials.