Red Cross staffer slain in Libya as Haftar pledges reprisal

Gunmen killed a senior Swiss staffer of the Red Cross in Libya on Wednesday, hours after a rogue ex-general who has taken on the country's Islamist militias survived a suicide bombing and pledged to retaliate.

Following the attack,  Haftar said he would respond to the attempt on his life with a "response strong than what they did."

"Those terrorist killers have not and will not achieve any of their targets," he told Libyan radio al-Marj. "They will pay a dear price."

The violence, which underscores the almost total lack of security in the North African state, followed an overnight rocket attack on the government's offices in the capital, Tripoli.

In Geneva, International Committee of the Red Cross spokesman Wolde Saugeron said one of its workers was "attacked by gunmen as he left a meeting with two colleagues" in the city of Sirte at around noon (1000 GMT).

"They were headed towards their car, which wasn't marked with ICRC insignia" and the attackers shot at "point-blank" range.

"Our organisation condemns this murder."

The man, who was not immediately named, headed the agency's office in Misrata, some 200 kilometres (124 miles) from Sirte.

Earlier, former general Khalifa Haftar, whose repeated deadly assaults on militias in Libya's second city Benghazi have earned him threats of reprisal, escaped a suicide bombing, one of his commanders said.

But three of his loyalists were killed in the attack on a villa outside the eastern city, the commander told AFP.

The villa, near an airport, has been serving as Haftar's command and control centre, said Mohamed Eljarh, a Libyan academic researcher and activist.

Benghazi was the cradle of the NATO-backed revolt that toppled former dictator Muammar Gaddafi in 2011 but has increasingly become a base for Islamist groups like Ansar al-Sharia that are accused by Washington of involvement in a deadly assault on the US consulate in 2012.

"A suicide bomber in a vehicle packed with explosives attacked a villa where we had gathered," said General Sagr al-Jerushi, who heads the air wing Haftar has used in his attacks.

"Three of our soldiers were killed," Jerushi said, adding he himself had been "lightly wounded."

It is the first attack against Haftar since he launched his offensive, dubbed "Operation Dignity," aimed at eradicating "terrorists" in Benghazi on 16 May.

Ansar al-Sharia has borne the brunt of Haftar’s offensive, and has seen its bases targeted and bombed, prompting the group to threaten a string of reprisals.

It warned Haftar he could suffer the same fate as Gaddafi who was killed by rebels in October 2011.

Al-Qaeda too has threatened the former general. Its North Africa affiliate - al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb - labelled him an "enemy of Islam" on Sunday and urged Libyans to fight him.

Haftar spokesman Mohamed Hejazi on Wednesday blamed these groups for the attack, although none have as yet claimed responsibility.

"We hold the terrorists responsible for this attack - this sort of suicide bombing is, of course, the work of terrorists and extremists," Hejazi said. 

Haftar claims his forces represent the legitimate Libyan army and has won the support of regular army units inside Benghazi, including the special forces, for his offensive.

Their latest assault, on Monday, left at least 21 people dead and 112 wounded.

Even though Haftar denies any political ambitions, the outgoing Islamist-led parliament accuses him of plotting a coup and has branded him an outlaw.

Awash with weapons

Since 2011, Libya has been awash with heavy weapons and former rebel militias control swathes of territory across the country.

As a result, the central government has struggled to impose its authority.

Haftar's campaign against the Islamists has struck a chord among the many Libyans angry at the militias, and there have been repeated street demonstrations in his support in Benghazi and Tripoli.

But he remains a figure of suspicion for many veterans of the uprising, with his US exile leading some of them to accuse him of links to the CIA, something also claimed by Gaddafi regime.

Washington has denied any role in Haftar's offensive in Benghazi.

In Tripoli, a rocket overnight hit the government's head offices, where new Prime Minister Ahmed Miitig was to hold a cabinet meeting, causing damage but no casualties, an official said.

Miitig was not in his office at the time.

Despite the attack, Miitig travelled to his offices on Wednesday to hold a meeting with his ministers, an AFP journalist said.

State buildings in Libya are regularly targeted by rival militias.