At least 65 people have died after a truck bomb struck a police training centre in Zliten, Libya, AFP reported. The blast was heard up to 60 kilometres away in the neighbouring town of Misrata. According to local media, dozens more have been injured around the al-Jahfal camp, which ousted leader Muammar Gaddafi used as a military base. Hundreds of recruits were believed to be outside the camp doing their morning exercises when the attack took place.

Martin Kobler, United Nations Special Representative to Libya, said the attack appeared to have been carried out by a suicide bomber, BBC reported. Local authorities declared an emergency as hospitals in major cities around the area prepared to receive the wounded.

Libya has been at the centre of an international conflict since the uprising in 2011, with warring governments and military forces attempting to gain control of its oil reserves. On Wednesday, fires caused by clashes between the Islamic State and local security forces spread to five storage tanks at Libya’s biggest oil ports, Al Jazeera reported.