Random shell kills four in Libya's Benghazi

At least four people were killed and seven others seriously injured Tuesday by a random shell falling on a densely populated neighbourhood in Libya's Benghazi city, according to a medical source.

Witnesses said the shell hit Ben Younes neighborhood near Al-Jala hospital, leaving many victims and serious material damage to surrounding buildings and cars, Xinhua reported.

The medical source said the injured were taken to the hospital for treatment.

A military source said the shell targeted the care unit of Al-Jala hospital, in which many wounded army soldiers and forces of General Khalifa Haftar are being treated. However, it missed the target and hit a number of civilians.

Since Oct 15, the Libyan army and forces loyal to the retired Major General Khalifa Haftar are waging a war to restore the city of Benghazi which had been held by Islamist militias. Some witnesses said that heavy clashes took place in the densely populated area of the city.

Benghazi, the seedbed of the 2011 protests that toppled Libya's former leader Muammar Gaddafi, has witnessed a drastic escalation of violence since then.

The city is now plagued by assassinations, kidnappings and deadly clashes between different armed groups.