Local officials said the store was in a camp controlled by an armed militia from the city of Misrata, but the group had left after clashing with residents.
Advertisement
Clashes on Tuesday between Libyan pro-government forces and the Islamic State group killed 34 loyalist fighters and wounded 100 others in Sirte, a medical official said, updating an earlier toll.
One of the militants then launched a rocket-propelled grenade targeted at the armory, which belonged to Libya’s National Forces Alliance (NFA), a political bloc that supports the country’s UN-backed unity government.
Around 200 loyalist troops have been killed and hundreds wounded since the start of the offensive to capture Sirte, 450 kilometres (280 miles) east of Tripoli.
Rida Issa, a spokesman for the government-backed brigades, said they were securing the “700” neighbourhood, just south of central Sirte, and had also made ground to the west of the city center.
Pro-government forces, mainly from the western city of Misrata, launched a major campaign against ISIL a month ago.
Angered, the armed residents attacked them at dawn.
Media reports say these militias form the main ragtag militias that are fighting ISIS in Sirte and are also backed by American and British special units.
As they breached the store a “big explosion” occurred, said a security official who could not immediately explain what triggered the blast.
The militias from Misrata honed their battle skills during the 2011 revolt and are now on the frontlines of the battle for Sirte.
Advertisement
Later, the same militia leader along with his bodyguards attacked a local supermarket as the owner refused to allow them to leave the premises with unpaid grocery which led to full-fledged armed conflict between the militia and the local residents, according to Mr. Al-Soul.
