Two people were killed in Libya during violent clashes between two influential armed groups near Tripoli, which broke out in the middle of the night and continued on Tuesday, leading to the suspension of flights at the capital’s only civilian airport.
The fighting pitted the “Brigade 444” against the “Al-Radaa Force” in several areas of the eastern and southern suburbs of Tripoli, an interior ministry officer who requested anonymity told AFP on Tuesday.
A hospital source announced an initial toll of two dead and more than 30 injured, some of them in serious conditions.
These two groups are among the most influential in Tripoli, where sits one of the two governments which are vying for power in a country undermined, since the fall of the regime of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, by divisions fueled by the proliferation of armed groups. shifting allegiances.
On Tuesday, unsuccessful mediations by political and military officials failed to bring the two groups to end the fighting, which spread south of Tripoli, in areas where many clinics and hospitals are located. , as well as highly populated areas.
The streets of Tripoli, including in areas far from the fighting, were almost empty, whereas on weekdays they are usually jammed with traffic jams. In the west of the city, cafes and shops were open but very little frequented, AFP noted.
The Libyan Red Crescent and the rescue teams were able to extract dozens of families from the combat zones but not from the clinics in the Tarik al-Shok district.
“Tensions began” with the announcement of “the arrest by al-Radaa of the leader of Brigade 444”, said the officer, adding that “the forces were still mobilized and access to Mitiga airport closed” Tuesday.
Manul, the UN mission in Libya, said in a statement that it “follows with concern” these events and “their impact on civilians”, calling for “immediate de-escalation”, “dialogue” and ” to preserve the progress made on the security front in recent years”.
Press releases from the embassies of the United States, the United Kingdom, France and the European Union echoed Manul’s calls for a cessation of hostilities.
According to local media, armored vehicles and armed pickups were deployed on Monday evening in several areas east and south of Tripoli after the arrest of the leader of Brigade 444, Mahmoud Hamza, at Mitiga airport, located in an area controlled by the al-Radaa Force. The reasons for this arrest are not clear at this stage.
Heavy gunfire, particularly heavy weapons, rang out in Ain Zara (southeast of Tripoli) before spreading to other areas near the airport and the University of Tripoli, where classes were held. suspended.
Mitiga authorities suspended traffic and diverted flights to Misrata, 200 km further east, also evacuating aircraft parked on the tarmac.
The Health Ministry has called for blood donations and the establishment of safe corridors to evacuate families trapped in combat zones.
The 444 Brigade comes under the Ministry of Defense and is considered the most disciplined of the armed groups in western Libya. In particular, it controls the southern suburbs of Tripoli but also the cities of Tarhouna and Bani Walid, securing the roads linking the capital to the south of the country.
The Force al-Radaa is a powerful militia that acts as police in Tripoli, and arrests both jihadists and common criminals. It presents itself as a security body independent of the interior and defense ministries and controls the center and east of Tripoli as well as the Mitiga airbase, the civilian airport and a prison.
At the end of May, fighting between the two groups, even in crowded streets in the center of Tripoli, had caused minor injuries. In July and August 2022, clashes between al-Radaa and other armed groups left around 50 dead in Tripoli.
08/15/2023 18:02:45 –         Tripoli (AFP) –         © 2023 AFP
