4th LD-Writethru: IS claims responsibility for suicide attack on Libyan election commission

TRIPOLI, May 2 (Xinhua) -- The militant group Islamic State (IS) on Wednesday claimed responsibility for the suicide attack on the headquarters of Libya's Higher Commission of Elections in the capital Tripoli.

The IS media arm Amaq tweeted a statement that the attack was carried out on the orders of the organization's spokesman Abu Hassan al-Muhajir.

In response to al-Muhajir's appeal, two suicide bombers, identified as Abu Ayyub and Abu Tawfiq, "targeted the centers of the infidels' elections and their supporters," the statement said.

The two attackers "detonated their explosive belts after they ran out of ammunition," it said.

The suicide attack killed more than 15 security personnel and employees, it noted.

Al-Muhajir was appointed the IS official spokesman after his predecessor Abu Muhammad al-Adnani was killed in a U.S.-led airstrike in Aleppo, Syria in August 2016.

The latest attack took place as the UN-backed government, in cooperation with the UN Support Mission in Libya, is preparing to hold presidential and parliamentary elections before the end of this year, as proposed by the head of the mission Ghassan Salame.

Abdalhakim Belkhair, deputy head of the commission, told Xinhua that the attack "seeks to send out clear messages attempting to thwart the upcoming elections in any way." Enditem