Six dead, 20 injured in Misrata suicide bombing

At least six people have been killed and more than 20 injured in a suicide bombing attack on a security checkpoint in Misrata, a local official news agency reported.

Libya is currently caught up in a conflict among rival factions with the Tobruk and Tripoli governments each having its own governments, armed forces and separate parliaments. The country has also become home to factions who have pledges allegiance to the Islamic State.

The LANA news agency – which is associated with the Tripoli government – reported that the incident occurred when a car laden with bombs exploded at the Sadada checkpoint in the east of the city of Misrata Sunday morning.

One woman and her two children were among the victims of the suicide blast at the checkpoint in Es Dada, east of Misrata, the LANA news agency said.

Misrata is a power base for Libya Dawn Forces, a self-described revolutionary coalition of militiamen and Islamist-leaning politicians that took over the capital Tripoli in the summer and set up their own self-declared government and parliament in a challenge to Prime Minister Abdullah al-Thinni's recognized administration.

Misrata forces have also been fighting on a second front with militants tied to Islamic State in the city of Sirte, where extremists and local Islamist militants have been expanding.

In a separate incident, warplanes from the Tobruk government carried out air strikes on Tripoli's outskirts on Sunday, targeting Libya Dawn positions, an air force spokesman said. There were no immediate reports of damage or casualties.