Seif al-Islam, the son and one-time heir apparent of late Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi, has been released after more than five years in detention, his captors said on Saturday. A statement by his captors, the Abu Bakr al-Siddiq Battalion, said Seif al-Islam was released on Friday, but gave no details on his whereabouts. Battalion officials … Read more
Libya has seized two foreign-flagged oil tankers and detained their crews for allegedly smuggling fuel after an hours-long gunbattle off the west coast, authorities said. Oil is Libya’s main natural resource, with reserves estimated at 48 billion barrels, the largest in Africa. Libya had an output capacity of about 1.6 million barrels per day before … Read more
Some of the women were on their way to Europe when IS fighters kidnapped and held them as sex slaves Libyan authorities in the northern port city Misrata have freed 28 Eritreans and seven Nigeria nationals who had been in detention for months as authorities investigated their ties to the ousted Islamic State (IS) group, … Read more
The UN refugee agency (UNHCR) has confirmed that a group of 35 people, mainly women and children from Eritrea who were held for nearly six months after fleeing a former Islamic State group stronghold in Libya, have been released (see earlier entry) . They were freed on the orders of the General Attorney in the … Read more
Ras Lanuf is one of four key oil terminals in the ‘oil crescent’ Libya’s National Oil Corporation (NOC) has warned international buyers against illicit contracts to purchase the country’s crude oil. The NOC is state-run and is one of the few remaining independent institutions in the conflict-ridden, and politically divided country. The latest warning comes … Read more
Dozens of armed factions have battled for control of oil-rich Libya since the 2011 fall of longtime dictator Moamer Kadhafi. This week, four days of intense fighting saw pro-unity government armed forces expand their control in the capital Tripoli, where dozens of militias operate. Further east, troops commanded by military strongman Khalifa Haftar said Tuesday … Read more
Troops commanded by Libyan military strongman Khalifa Haftar launched an offensive on Tuesday to seize two of the country’s key eastern oil terminals, a spokesman said. “Ground, sea and air forces launched joint attacks to liberate Ras Lanuf from terrorist groups,” Khalifa al-Abidi said after orders were issued early Tuesday for the offensive, which is … Read more
Troops commanded by Libyan military strongman Khalifa Haftar launched an assault on Tuesday to seize two of the country’s key eastern oil terminals, a spokesman said. “Ground, sea and air forces launched joint attacks to liberate Ras Lanuf from terrorist groups,” Khalifa al-Abidi said after orders were issued early Tuesday for the offensive, which is … Read more
East Libyan forces carried out air strikes around major oil ports overnight as they sought to regain control of the area from a rival faction, a military spokesman said on Saturday. The eastern-based Libyan National Army (LNA) and allied forces retreated on Friday from the oil ports of Es Sider and Ras Lanuf, two of … Read more
The forces of eastern Libya’s military strongman Khalifa Haftar have lost control of a key oil export terminal they had seized last year, a spokesman conceded on Saturday. Colonel Ahmad al-Mismari said that the rival forces had overrun the main airfield in the oil port of Ras Lanuf and identified them as Islamists of the … Read more
An armed faction entered two major Libyan oil ports on Friday, pushing back forces that captured and reopened the terminals in September, officials and residents said. The move risks increasing the fighting around the ports and casts new doubt over Libya’s attempt to revive its oil production. The terminals at Es Sider and Ras Lanuf … Read more
It is believed they were trying to cross the Mediterranean to Italy. Migrant deaths have risen to record levels along this smuggling route in recent months. A torn rubber boat was found nearby, and it is feared more bodies may surface as such vessels usually carry up to 120 people. Some of those who died … Read more
Tripoli (AFP) – The head of Libya’s unity government on Wednesday visited the coastal city of Sirte where loyalist forces have trapped Islamic State group jihadists in their last holdout, officials said. Fayez al-Sarraj’s visit was his first to Sirte since loyalist forces launched an offensive more than three months ago to drive the jihadists … Read more