A car bomb exploded early this afternoon near the Dar Al-Salam Hotel in Torbuk where the House of Representatives has been holding its meetings and several members stay. The House was in session at the time of the blast.
“The number of casualties is not yet clear but there has been minor damage to the front of the hotel building,” said Marwan Younes Bakr, spokesperson for Tobruk Municipal Council. Initial reports, however, suggest that four people, all soldiers, were injured.
According to the spokesman for the General Chief of Staff, Ahmed Al-Mismari, the vehicle exploded in the hotel car park and was not a suicide attack as initially suggested.
The attackers intended to destroy the building, he added, but failed to do so because they could not get closer to the hotel.
It is the third bomb attack in Tobruk in as many months. Last month, 21 people were injured when a bomb exploded at a crowded junction as cars were queuing at traffic lights.
Following today’s attack, phone and internet communications with Tobruk were briefly cut but have now been restored.
No one has yet claimed responsibility, but Islamists are suspected.
Jamal Adel
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