Tribal clashes kill two in Libyan town: local official

Clashes erupted between rival tribes in the Libyan town of Zliten late Thursday killing two people, a local official said, in the latest tribal or ethnic violence since the ouster of Muammar Qaddafi’s iron-fisted regime.

“Anti-aircraft guns, rocket propelled grenades and light weapons were used in the fighting,” the official told AFP on condition of anonymity. “So far, we have a toll of two dead and several wounded.”

The official said that a murder was at the center of the vendetta between the two tribes in Zliten, some 160 kilometers (100 miles) east of Tripoli but he gave no details.

Since the overthrow of the now slain Qaddafi in October last year, there have been a spate of deadly clashes between rival tribes and ethnic groups, particularly in western and southern Libya, settling old scores or fighting over lucrative cross-border smuggling routes.

The proliferation of heavy weapons outside government hands during last year’s uprising has meant that some have been very violent.