Benghazi protests defend Italian Consul

Benghazi residents have held protests outside the headquarters of the Italian consulate, in solidarity with Italian consul Guido De Sanctis, after his vehicle was attacked by unknown assailants last Saturday. Demonstrators demanded security for international diplomats inside Libya, denouncing the attack -- as well as any other attack on civilians in Benghazi -- as “terrorism.\" Sanctis escaped unharmed after unidentified gunmen opened fire on the bullet-proof van he was travelling in over the weekend. It represents the second major attack on an international diplomat in Libya\'s second city, after a premeditated assault on the US consulate in Benghazi left US ambassador Chris Stephens dead and many others injured, last September.