Brigadier Fowzi Mansouri, head of military intelligence for eastern Libya's Libyan National Army, died in a car bomb explosion outside his home in Benghazi on Monday evening.
A senior military intelligence official in eastern Libya was killed when an explosive device detonated in his vehicle outside his residence in the Hawari district of Benghazi, according to security sources who spoke to Reuters. Brigadier Fowzi Mansouri held the position of intelligence chief for the Libyan National Army, the military force that controls much of the country's eastern and southern regions. The sources did not identify those responsible for the attack or provide specifics about the explosive device used.
The incident underscores the volatile security situation that persists in Libya despite formal efforts to resolve the country's ongoing divisions. Although a ceasefire agreement was reached in 2020 that reduced large-scale military operations, rival factions and armed groups continue to maintain significant influence across the nation.
Libya has remained fractured since 2014, following the NATO-backed uprising that removed longtime leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011. The country is now effectively divided between the Libyan National Army, commanded by Khalifa Haftar and based in the east, and the internationally recognised Government of National Unity, headquartered in the capital Tripoli, which controls western territories. The attack on a prominent military intelligence figure suggests that security threats remain a persistent challenge for the eastern-based authorities.
