TRIPOLI (Reuters) - An air strike on a detention centre for illegal migrants in a suburb of the Libyan capital killed 40 and wounded 80, a health official said.

Pictures published by Libyan officials showed African migrants being treated in a hospital after the strike. </s> A Libyan health official says an airstrike hit a detention center for migrants near Tripoli, killing at least 40 people

BENGHAZI, Libya (AP) — A Libyan health official says an airstrike hit a detention center for migrants near Tripoli, killing at least 40 people. </s> Libyan official says airstrike kills 40 migrants in Tripoli

BENGHAZI, Libya (AP) — A Libyan health official says an airstrike has hit a detention center for migrants in a suburb of the capital of Tripoli, killing at least 40 people.

Malek Merset, a spokesman for the health ministry of the U.N.-supported government, says the airstrike on the Tajoura detention center also wounded 80 migrants.

In a statement, the U.N.-supported government blamed the self-styled Libyan National Army, led by commander Khalifa Hifter, for the airstrike.

Libya is split between two warring governments and Hifter's forces control much of the country's east and south. </s> BENGHAZI, Libya (AP) — An airstrike hit a detention center for migrants near the Libyan capital early Wednesday, killing at least 44 people and wounding more than 130, the U.N. mission to the war-torn country said.

The airstrike raises further concerns about the European Union's policy of partnering with Libyan militias to prevent migrants from crossing the Mediterranean, which often leaves them at the mercy of brutal traffickers or stranded in squalid detention centers near the front lines.

It could also lead to greater Western pressure on Khalifa Hifter, a Libyan general whose forces launched an offensive on Tripoli in April. The Tripoli-based government blamed his self-styled Libyan National Army for the airstrike and called for the U.N. to investigate.

A spokesman for Hifter's forces did not immediately answer phone calls and messages seeking comment. Local media reported the LNA had launched airstrikes against a militia camp near the detention center in Tripoli's Tajoura neighborhood. </s> (CNN) An airstrike that hit a migrant detention center near the Libyan capital early Wednesday has left at least 40 people dead and another 200 injured, a health official in the country's UN-recognized government told CNN.

"I expect the death toll to go up given that there are critically injured people being treated in hospital," Malek Merset, a spokesman for the Ministry of Health, said.

Satellite images taken of the detention center in Tajoura, a coastal town east of Tripoli, showed extensive damage to several buildings in the complex. Photos taken on the ground captured piles of rubble left where structures had been, while emergency crews worked to remove both the wounded and the dead.

Libya's Government of National Accord (GNA) condemned the "horrific crime," blaming renegade Gen. Khalifa Haftar, leader of the Libyan National Army (LNA), whose forces have been waging an assault on the capital for the last two months.

The LNA has denied responsibility for the attack, instead accusing Tripoli-based "militias" -- who are largely allied to the GNA -- of orchestrating a "conspiracy" to "tarnish" their reputation.

Read More </s> At least 40 people have died in an airstrike on a migrant detention centre in the Libyan capital Tripoli.

Another 80 people have been injured in the attack according to a health official, which is being blamed on forces loyal to rebel leader Khalifa Haftar, who launched an offensive to take Tripoli from the internationally recognised government three months ago.

Malek Mersek, spokesman for a state emergency medical services, said 40 people had been killed and 80 wounded in the strike on the detention centre in the Tajoura suburb located next to a military camp.

The Tripoli-based government said in a statement that dozens of people had been killed and wounded in an airstrike blamed on the "war criminal Khalifa Haftar".

Libya is the main jumping off point for thousands of Africans trying to reach Europe. Many are held in government-run detention centres in western Libya in what human rights groups and the United Nations say are often inhuman conditions.

Tajoura, east of Tripoli's centre, is home to several military camps of forces allied to Libya's government, which have been targeted by airstrikes for weeks.

Tripoli is besieged by Haftar's Libyan National Army (LNA). It denied hitting the detention camp, claiming it had been shelled by militias loyal to the Libyan government.

Rival factions have been battling for control of Libya and its vast oil and gas reserves since the overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.

The country has also become a proxy battleground for regional powers trying to exert their influence.

The LNA has for years been armed by Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, while Turkey has shipped weapons to the Tripoli government. </s> Libyan official says airstrike kills 40 migrants in Tripoli

BENGHAZI, Libya (AP) — An airstrike hit a detention center for migrants early Wednesday in the Libyan capital, killing at least 40 people, a health official in the country's U.N.-supported government said.

The airstrike targeting the detention center in Tripoli's Tajoura neighborhood also wounded 80 migrants, said Malek Merset, a spokesman for the health ministry said. Merset posted photos of migrants who were being taken in ambulances to hospitals.

In a statement, the U.N.-supported government blamed the self-styled Libyan National Army, led by Khalifa Hifter, for the airstrike.

The LNA launched an offensive against the weak Tripoli-based government in April. Hifter's forces control much of the country's east and south but were dealt a significant blow last week when militias allied with the Tripoli government reclaimed the strategic town of Gharyan, about 100 kilometers (62 miles) from the capital.

Gharyan had been a key supply route for the LNA forces.

The fighting for Tripoli has threatened to plunge Libya into another bout of violence on the scale of the 2011 conflict that ousted longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi and led to his death.

Thousands of migrants are detained in Libya after being apprehended by local forces funded by the European Union and are now caught up in the armed conflict. The centers have limited food and other supplies, and international agencies have called for speeding up resettlement of the migrants. </s> An airstrike hit a detention centre for migrants early Wednesday in the Libyan capital, killing at least 40 people, a health official in the country’s UN-supported government said.

The airstrike targeting the detention centre in Tripoli’s Tajoura neighbourhood also wounded 80 migrants, said Malek Merset, a spokesman for the health ministry. Merset posted photos of migrants who were being taken in ambulances to hospitals.

Footage circulating online and said to be from inside the migrant detention centre showed horrific images of blood and body parts mixed with rubble and migrants’ belongings.

The UN refugee agency in Libya condemned the airstrike on the detention centre, which houses 616 migrants and refugees.

The Tripoli-based government blamed the self-styled Libyan National Army, led by Khalifa Hifter, for the airstrike and called for the U.N. support mission in Libya to establish a fact-finding committee to investigate.

A spokesman for Hifter forces did not immediately answer phone calls and messages seeking comment. Local media reported that LNA had launched airstrikes against a militia camp near the detention centre.

The LNA launched an offensive against the weak Tripoli-based government in April. Hifter’s forces control much of the country’s east and south but were dealt a significant blow last week when militias allied with the Tripoli government reclaimed the strategic town of Gharyan, about 100 kilometres (62 miles) from the capital.

Gharyan had been a key supply route for the LNA forces.

The fighting for Tripoli has threatened to plunge Libya into another bout of violence on the scale of the 2011 conflict that ousted longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi and led to his death.

At least 6,000 migrants from Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia, Sudan and other nations are locked in dozens of detention facilities in Libya that are run by militias accused of torture and other human rights abuses. Most of the migrants were apprehended by European Union-funded and -trained Libyan coast guards while trying to cross the Mediterranean Sea into Europe.

The detention centres have limited food and other supplies for the migrants, who made often-arduous journeys at the mercy of abusive traffickers who hold them for ransom money from families back home.

The U.N. refugee agency has said that more than 3,000 migrants are in danger because they are held in detention centres close to the front lines between Hifter’s forces and the militias allied with the Tripoli government.

Libya became a major crossing point for migrants to Europe after the 2011 ouster and killing of Gadhafi, when the North African nation was thrown into chaos, armed militias proliferated and central authority fell apart. </s> Libyan Red Crescent workers recover migrants bodies after an airstrike at a detention center in Tajoura, east of Tripoli Wednesday, July 3, 2019. An airstrike hit the detention center for migrants early Wednesday in the Libyan capital. (AP Photo/Hazem Ahmed)

BENGHAZI, Libya (AP) — An airstrike hit a detention center for migrants near the Libyan capital early Wednesday, killing at least 44 people and wounding more than 130, the U.N. mission to the war-torn country said.

The airstrike raises further concerns about the European Union’s policy of partnering with Libyan militias to prevent migrants from crossing the Mediterranean, which often leaves them at the mercy of brutal traffickers or stranded in squalid detention centers near the front lines.

It wasn’t immediately clear who was responsible for the strike but some suspected involvement by foreign countries allied with Khalifa Hifter, the Libyan general whose forces launched an offensive on Tripoli in April. Countries assisting Hifter include the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Russia.

The Tripoli-based government blamed Hifter’s self-styled Libyan National Army for the airstrike and called for the U.N. to investigate. The attack could also lead to greater Western pressure on Hifter.

A spokesman for Hifter’s forces did not immediately answer phone calls and messages seeking comment. Local media reported the LNA had launched airstrikes against a militia camp near the detention center in Tripoli’s Tajoura neighborhood.

Footage circulating online and said to be from inside the migrant detention center showed blood and body parts mixed with rubble and migrants’ belongings.

The airstrike hit a workshop housing weapons and vehicles and an adjacent hangar where around 150 migrants were being held, mostly Sudanese and Moroccans, according to two migrants who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisal.

The migrants said three or four survived unharmed and about 20 were wounded. They said the rest were killed, indicating the final death toll could be much higher.

Doctors Without Borders said the detention cell that was destroyed held 126 migrants. The aid group’s Libya medical coordinator, Prince Alfani, said teams visited the center just hours before the airstrike. He said survivors fear for their lives, and he called for the immediate evacuation of the detention centers.

The U.N. refugee agency also condemned the airstrike and called for an immediate end to efforts to return migrants to Libya.

UNHCR spokesman Charlie Yaxley noted that the agency had warned less than two months ago that anyone inside the Tajoura detention center was at risk of being caught in the fighting around Tripoli. Then, an airstrike that hit nearby wounded two migrants. Yaxley said UNHCR is sending medical teams to the site after the latest airstrike.

In a statement Wednesday, the French Foreign Ministry called for a quick return to the U.N.-backed talks.

France also called for guaranteed access for humanitarian groups, which have often struggled to bring aid to the thousands of migrants trapped in detention centers, including many who have been intercepted by the Libyan coast guard en route to Europe.

The head of the African Union, Moussa Faki Mahamat, also condemned the strike. He called for an independent investigation and said those responsible for the “horrific crime” should be held to account. U.N. envoy Ghassan Salame said the airstrike could amount to a war crime because it “killed by surprise innocent people whose dire conditions forced them to be in that shelter.”

The LNA launched an offensive against the weak Tripoli-based government in April. Hifter’s forces control much of Libya’s east and south but suffered a significant blow last week when militias allied with the Tripoli government reclaimed the strategic town of Gharyan, about 100 kilometers (62 miles) from the capital. Gharyan had been a key LNA supply route.

Hifter’s forces have targeted militia positions in Tajoura with airstrikes in recent weeks. The LNA said Monday it had begun an air campaign on rival forces in Tripoli after it lost control of Gharyan.

Hifter’s forces boast MiG fighter jets supplied by neighboring Egypt, as well as drones, attack helicopters and mine-resistant vehicles. It was not immediately clear what munitions were used in the airstrike early Wednesday.

Oded Berkowitz, a security analyst focused on the Libyan conflict, said Hifter’s LNA flies “a handful of obsolete aircraft” that are “in poor condition.” He said it has received spare parts from Egypt and possibly Russia, as well as decommissioned aircraft from both countries.

“Egypt and the UAE have been conducting air operations on behalf of the LNA, but there are no indications that the UAE transferred aircraft to the LNA,” he said.

Fathi Bashagha, the interior minister in the Tripoli-based government, claimed that foreign countries allied with Hifter were behind the attack. He told The Associated Press that Hifter’s foreign backers “went mad” after his forces lost Gharyan. He did not name any countries or provide evidence to support his claim. He also denied any weapons were being stored at the detention facility.

The fighting for Tripoli has threatened to plunge Libya into another bout of violence on the scale of the 2011 conflict that ousted longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi and led to his death.

Hifter says he is determined to restore stability to the North African country. He is backed by Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia while his rivals, mainly Islamists, are supported by Turkey and Qatar.

His campaign against Islamic militants across Libya since 2014 won him growing international support from world leaders who are concerned that Libya has become a haven for armed groups and a major conduit for migrants bound for Europe.

His opponents, however, view him as an aspiring autocrat and fear a return to one-man rule.

Libya became a major crossing point for migrants to Europe after Gadhafi’s overthrow, when the North African nation was thrown into chaos, armed militias proliferated and central authority fell apart.

At least 6,000 migrants from Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia, Sudan and other nations are locked in dozens of detention facilities in Libya run by militias accused of torture and other abuses. Most of the migrants were apprehended by European Union-funded and -trained Libyan coast guards while trying to cross the Mediterranean Sea to Europe.

The detention centers have limited food and other supplies for the migrants, who often end up there after arduous journeys at the mercy of abusive traffickers who hold them for ransom money from families back home.

The U.N. refugee agency has said that more than 3,000 migrants are in danger because they are held in detention centers close to the front lines.

Magdy reported from Cairo. Associated Press writers Maggie Michael in Cairo and Lori Hinnant in Paris contributed.
A Libyan National Army airstrike on a suburb of Tripoli hits a detention centre for illegal migrants, killing at least 53 people and injuring 80 people.