BERSIS, Libya, Dec. 22 (UPI) -- A suicide car bomb at a security checkpoint killed at least 13 people in Bersis, Libya, Sunday, medical and security officials confirmed.
The explosion occurred 30 miles from Benghazi, where heavily armed groups have been battling security forces and each other since the government of Moammar Gadhafi fell in 2011, the Los Angeles Times reported Sunday.
A U.S. school teacher was killed in Benghazi earlier in December, and the city was the scene of an attack on the American consulate in September 2012 that killed U.S. Ambassador to Libya Christopher Stevens. A number of diplomatic missions in Benghazi have closed as a result of the recent fighting.
Government officials declared three days of mourning and announced the postponement of independence day celebrations scheduled for Tuesday, the Times reported.
