Dozens Killed, Hundreds Injured in Libyan Protests

The violence occured at the funeral of people who were killed in the fightings on Friday. Photo by EPA/BGNES

Dozens of Libyan anti-government protesters were killed by sniper fire from security forces in Benghazi on Saturday night, bringing the death toll to about 200 people.

The Libyan troops have opened fire with machine-guns and large-calibre weapons on protesters against the 42-year rule of leader Muammad Gaddafi, the BBC reported.

According to witnesses, snipers shot from the roofs of buildings, while demonstrators fought back against troops on the ground. The violence occured at a funeral of people killed in the fighting on Friday.

A Benghazi resident has told the BBC that security forces inside a government compound had fired on protesters with mortars and 14.5mm machine guns.

"A lot of people have fallen down today," he said.

Doctors at hospitals said they were treating hundreds of injured people. In their words, the situation in the city was "like hell".

Different reports claim different number of deaths – from at least 100 to more than 200.

Despite the clash on Saturday night, protesters have planned another rally at 1 pm on Sunday.

"There are a lot of people getting killed for their freedom. Our goal is simple: we want Gaddafi to leave. We want freedom. We want democracy," a man told CNN.

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