Libya Conflict: WHO: Death toll exceeds 200 in Tripoli fighting
Updated 22:40, 21-Apr-2019
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The World Health Organization says some 205 people have now been killed and over 900 wounded in the latest round of fighting near the Libyan capital Tripoli. That's after a two-week assault by forces based in the east of the country who are trying to capture Libya's capital from a weak UN-backed unity government. CGTN's Guy Henderson reports from the eastern city of Benghazi.
It is an offensive Libya's eastern generals portray as heroic.
For those caught in the middle, this is the reality.
The death toll is rising in the capital Tripoli. Shelling has been indiscriminate.
"That brutal man Khalifa Haftar bombards civilians," this mourner says.
Each side blames the other.
Some civilians remain trapped, others have fled. This lady has been hiding in an abandoned factory in the city.
"We left our homes with only our clothes and our children," she says.
The embattled UN-backed government is calling this a coup.
AHMED MAITEEG DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER, UN-BACKED GOVT. "The position of the government is very clear: this is a coup, and he has to go back with his troops to where he was before this all happened."
That place is Benghazi where the rival government who ordered the attack says there'll be no turning back.
ABDULLAH AL THANI PRIME MINISTER, EASTERN-BASED GOVT.  "If the international community take their hands away and the supportive countries like Turkey stops sending their fleet and their navies to Misrata, the conflict will end soon. The militias would not have the power to resist the army. But with external support, if they give them modern weapons, the conflict could take 8-9 months."
Eastern officials promise elections would come after.
There may be no hurry.
ABU BAKR BEIRA EASTERN PARLIAMENTARIAN "Libya needs a strong man who can rule the country for 2-3 years, then he should be convinced to bring it back to democracy. But if you have someone like Bashir in Sudan who was there for 30 years and now they took him out last week. This is the normal behaviour for military people in the Arab World unfortunately."
GUY HENDERSON BENGHAZI "Libya's rival government may have hoped to take Tripoli in days. Now, it is preparing for a longer fight. Critics say dialogue is the only way out of this mess, they worry a vicious, drawn-out battle will shatter any chance of that. Those backing Khalifa Haftar say that political process was doomed. And that despite all of this destruction, more force was the only other choice. GH, CGTN, Benghazi."