Arab League urges immediate halt to Libya fighting

By Hussein Elkabany

CAIRO

The Arab League called on Sunday for an immediate halt to the clashes between rival militias in the Libyan capital, Tripoli.

Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit expressed in a statement his “strong condemnation of the serious escalation in the security situation in the Libyan capital of Tripoli as a result of the continuing armed clashes”.

He went on to argue for the “necessity for an immediate cessation of hostilities and compliance with cease-fire arrangements and actions by the Presidential Council of the National Accord Government.”

Similar reactions have been made by the UN and the Turkish Foreign Ministry.

Since last Sunday, a total of 38 people were killed in the violence that broke out between militias aligned with the UN-backed unity government in southeastern Tripoli.
The violence erupted after the Defense Ministry-affiliated 7th Infantry Brigade accused the Tripoli Revolutionary Brigade, which is aligned with the Interior Ministry of attacking its positions in southern Tripoli.

Libya has been dogged by turmoil since 2011, when a bloody NATO-backed uprising led to the death of strongman Muammar Gaddafi after more than four decades in power.

Since then, Libya’s stark political divisions have yielded two rival seats of power -- one in Tobruk and another in Tripoli -- and a host of heavily-armed militia groups.

By Hussein Elkabany

CAIRO

The Arab League called on Sunday for an immediate halt to the clashes between rival militias in the Libyan capital, Tripoli.

Similar reactions have been made by the UN and the Turkish Foreign Ministry.

Libya has been dogged by turmoil since 2011, when a bloody NATO-backed uprising led to the death of strongman Muammar Gaddafi after more than four decades in power.

Since then, Libya’s stark political divisions have yielded two rival seats of power -- one in Tobruk and another in Tripoli -- and a host of heavily-armed militia groups.