U.S. weapons experts disposed of 1,300 pounds of explosives deep in the sands outside Tripoli on Sunday, MSNBC reported. Some of the detonations made for great visuals, but the deeper and broader goal “is to help the Libyan people to secure these loose arms,” said U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Andrew Shapiro. Since September, experts have disabled about 5,000 shoulder-fired missile launchers, but many more weapons and munitions went missing during Libya’s eight-month civil war, with many taken from abandoned arms depots. The country remains prone to chaotic clashes as rival militias vie for power in the streets: Tripoli’s airport closed Saturday night after men tried to take it over while using national army vehicles, and in a separate incident the head of the new army was ambushed at a checkpoint, but his jeep escaped and two militiamen were arrested, according to The Guardian.
