The recent explosion that killed three people in the Libyan city of Benghazi might have been an accident and not a deliberate car bombing as previously thought, media reports citing a couple of Libyan Ministers said late on Wednesday.
Interior Minister Ashur Shwayel told reporters in Benghazi that "all the signs point to an accidental" blast. He said it was now believed that the explosion occurred in a car transporting explosives.
According to a preliminary report by the Libyan Army, the car was not stationary when it exploded and it was transporting explosives used to make anti-tank mines. Nevertheless, the two occupants of the car are yet to be identified.
Separately, the BBC quoted Justice Minister Salah al-Mirghani as saying on Wednesday that it was "too early to draw any conclusions" about Monday's car explosion.
"Even if it was detonated accidentally [by those inside] as it was heading somewhere else, or whatever the reason - it is not normal to be driving around with explosives like that," he said, adding: "The city was terrorized, a 16-year old died, investigations need to be concluded."
Earlier reports indicated that a grey Mazda had exploded near the al-Jalaa hospital in Benghazi on Monday, destroying a restaurant and severely damaging nearby buildings. Libya's Interior Ministry has since confirmed that the explosion killed three people and left 14 injured.
Incidentally, Benghazi was the birthplace of Libya's armed revolt that eventually ousted the former autocratic regime of Col. Moammar Qadhafi in August 2011. Nevertheless, the city has since witnessed several bomb and gun attacks.
The most notable of the violent incidents in Benghazi was the September 2012 attack on the U.S. Consulate in which Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other American officials were killed. Following Stevens' death, thousands of enraged Benghazi residents took to the streets and forced Ansar al-Sharia, an Islamist extremist militia blamed for the Consulate attack, to leave the city.
Notably, Libya's first free elections in decades were held in July 2012, following the toppling of the Qadhafi regime. Qadhafi, who ruled Libya for 42 years with an iron fist, was captured and subsequently shot dead on October 20, 2011 by revolutionary fighters.
Despite the latest political developments, most of the country is controlled by militias that fought the Qadhafi regime, despite serious efforts by the current government to bring them under its authority. Their continued presence in Libya even after the civil war has raised concerns about the possible outbreak of further violence in the oil-rich North African nation.
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June 05, 2026 16:18 ET A busy week for economic news flow saw a slew of reports being released that reflected the trends in the U.S. labor market. In Europe, economic growth and inflation data gained attention as the European Central Bank and Bank of England head for policy session later in the month. In Asia, the monetary policy session of the Indian central bank was in focus as the country, a major oil importer, reels under the pressures of a weaker rupee and rising inflation.