GOVERNMENT FORCES IN Libya have opened fire on a funeral procession for those killed in anti-Gaddafi demonstrations over recent days.

As demonstrations enter the fifth day, up to 173 people are now believed to have been killed by government forces according to a leading human rights organisation, reports the New York Times. Almost all of the violence has been focused at Libya’s second largest city, Benghazi, the epicentre of the demonstrations.

Reports that small uprisings have occurred in the capital Tripoli have also surfaced today, however these were said to be quickly suppressed.

A doctor speaking to Al Jazeera from Benghazi’s al-Jalah hospital said that many of the injured and dead were young people suffering from gunshot wounds, and that staff believed forces were operating a shoot-to-kill policy.

Some 50 Libyan Muslim leaders have urged security forces to stop killing civilians, signing a statement that reads: “Recognise that the killing of innocent human beings is forbidden… Stop the massacre now.”

Libya has the largest oil reserves in Africa, but despite this two-thirds of the 6.5 million population live on less than $2 a day, reports Al Jazeera.