According to the Libyan News Agency, there were 709 other cases of alcohol poisoning.
Alcohol sale and
consumption is prohibited in Libya, a conservative Muslim nation, but
smuggled alcoholic drinks can be found, in addition to homemade alcohol
locally known as "bokha."
The National Security Directorate said this large-scale poisoning was caused by such locally made alcohol.
A medical
source in Tripoli who has seen some of the patients told CNN their
symptoms indicated methanol poisoning. Methanol overdose symptoms
include breathing problems, blindness, comas, seizures and death.
Officials say the first
case was reported in the capital on Thursday, and over the following
days Tripoli Central Hospital received a large number of people showing
signs of alcohol poisoning. Some cases had to be transferred to other
hospitals.
Those affected ranged in
age from 16 to 55, the head of the internal medicine department at the
hospital, Dr. Massoud al-Azzabi, told the state news agency on Monday.
Some lost their eyesight, and some of the others were put on dialysis
machines or respirators, he said.
In a statement released
Tuesday, the Tripoli National Security Directorate announced the
formation of a committee of five officers to oversee the investigation
into the alcohol poisoning, which some reports call the worst ever in
Libya.
The directorate said
police stations in the city have started to record the cases and the
Criminal Investigations unit is investigating.
A security task force
that includes a number of security and revolutionary forces has been
formed and is ready to raid suspected bootlegger hideouts upon orders
from the government, according to the state news agency.
http://edition.cnn.com/2013/03/12/world/africa/libya-alcohol-poisoning/index.html?hpt=iaf_c2
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