Forces loyal to Libya’s UN-backed unity government on Thursday took control of Tripoli International Airport, which was largely destroyed in 2014, after the withdrawal of rival militias from the site. “This is the beginning of the reconstruction of state of institutions” and the return to rule of law, said General Najmi al-Nakoua, leader of the … Read more
Libyan militia groups opposed to the UN-backed government have launched a series of attacks on loyalist forces in the capital, Tripoli. At least 28 people were killed and about 130 injured, officials said. Explosions were heard across the city and witnesses said residential areas in the south had been shelled. The UN-backed Government of National … Read more
Forces loyal to Libya’s unity government said Saturday that 52 of its fighters were killed as they repelled rival militias in fierce clashes in the capital Tripoli. Apart from sporadic gunfire in southern Tripoli, calm returned to the city on Saturday, the first day of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. Among the 52 killed … Read more
Fierce clashes erupted on Friday between rival armed groups in the Libyan capital Tripoli, seat of the country’s UN-backed unity government. Tripoli has been gripped by a power struggle between dozens of militias since a NATO-backed uprising toppled longtime dictator Moamer Kadhafi in 2011. AFP journalists heard explosions and artillery fire as fighting broke out … Read more
Reports suggest as many as 140 people, including civilians, may have died in an attack on an airbase in Libya. It was originally thought 60 people died when a government-allied militia tried to take over the Brak al-Shati base on Thursday. The UN-backed government’s defence minister and the commander of the militia have both been … Read more
Libya’s unity government has called for “urgent intervention” by the international community to end military escalation in its south, warning of a possible “civil war”. For more than a week, militias allied to the UN-backed Government of National Accord have fought off rival forces trying to capture an airbase in the south of the North … Read more