Libyan State TV denies massacre claims
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Libyan state television denounced on Tuesday the allegations that the security forces are slaughtering protesters in several cities as "lies and rumors."
Libya was rocked by unrest in the past week with unconfirmed media reports of hundreds of protesters killed in clashes with the security forces. Dubai-based Al-Jazeera TV also reported that in Tripoli on Monday, Libyan forces hurled hand grenades at anti-government demonstrators and warplanes bombed protesters en route to a local army base.
Citing eyewitnesses, the TV channel put the death toll on Monday alone at some 160. The number could not be immediately verified by other sources.
The United Nations secretary-general Ban Ki-Moon called for an immediate end to the violence in Libya given the report that the Libyan government used war planes and helicopters against demonstrators, according to the statement from Ban's spokesman.
Egypt has enhanced its troops on the Libyan border to cope with an influx of refugees and the evacuation of Egyptian nationals.
Some 10,000 Egyptians are already at the border, waiting to cross, after 5,000 compatriots came over on Monday.
More than 1,000 Chinese construction workers in Libya were forced to flee after armed robbers ransacked their compound.
Lu Jingchun, spokesman for the Chinese embassy, said two embassy employees had arrived in Matruh, a port city in northwestern Egypt on Monday, to help staff of Chinese companies who are leaving Libya. A first batch of some 83 Chinese from Libya will arrive in Matruh but their arrival time is unclear, Lu said.
Turkey will send two more ships to evacuate Turkish nationals from Libya. One ship will set sail for Libya this afternoon and the other will leave on Wednesday, following two ships sent earlier to the unrest-scarred country. Altogether 1,083 Turkish nationals have been brought back to Turkey from Libya so far, Turkish State Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Cemil Cicek said Tuesday.
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