Rival militias clash in Libyan capital over the death of one of their leader, killing two people and injuring 29 other.

Rival militias clash in Libyan capital over the death of one of their leader, killing two people and injuring 29 other.

A health ministry spokesman said on Friday the fighting killed two people and wounded 29 others, but that most of those hurt had left hospital after receiving first aid.

Libya has been plagued by deadly unrest since NATO-backed rebels toppled the regime of now slain veteran dictator Moammar Gaddafi in 2011.

Libya's new authorities have pained to impose law and order as many of the ex-rebels have banded into militias and carved their own fiefdoms in a country awash with weapons looted from Gaddafi’s arsenal.

The latest fighting erupted following news that militia chief Nuri Friwan died Thursday of injuries incurred at a checkpoint manned by a rival group in Soug al-Jomaa, in eastern Tripoli.

Witnesses and security officials said intense fire and explosions rocked several parts of the capital overnight and could be heard well into the early hours of Friday.

To avenge Friwan's death, armed members of the Misrata militia drove to the Soug al-Jomaa district in vehicles equipped with anti-aircraft guns, blocking the main road to the area, witnesses said.

Several buildings were hit by anti-aircraft fire during the fighting, including the 15-storey Radisson hotel which is used by diplomats and businessmen.