Heavy fighting in Libya between two militias, the 444 Brigade and the al-Radaa Force, on August 14 and 15, 2023 left at least 27 dead and 106 injured in the suburbs of Tripoli, according to a provisional report from the Emergency Medical Center . On August 16, a precarious calm seems to reign over the Libyan capital.
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In Libya, the fierce fighting between two influential armed groups in the Libyan capital on Monday and Tuesday left at least 27 dead and 106 injured, medical sources said on August 16.
According to the same source, 234 families were able to be rescued and extracted from combat zones south of Tripoli, as well as several dozen foreign doctors or nurses, stranded.
Read alsoLibya: two militias clash in Tripoli in fierce fighting
This Wednesday morning, the Libyan capital has regained relative calm. The airport, which was closed following the fighting, has reopened but no commercial flights have yet been registered.
It was actually late Tuesday evening that an agreement was reached. A “Social Council” made up of elders and notables from the Souk al Jomaa district, in the southern suburbs of Tripoli, announced that it had reached an agreement with the head of government to release Colonel Mahmoud Hamza.
This militia leader commands Brigade 444 and it was following his kidnapping on Monday by the Radaa deterrent force that the fighting began.
Calm has therefore returned to the capital and the ceasefire is respected, but the tension is still palpable.
The Souk el Jomaa district is the stronghold of the deterrent forces and the fighting in this district has affected densely populated areas, forcing civilians to flee the area.
These clashes between opposing militias are recurrent in Tripoli. They result from competition between armed groups seeking to extend their influence and power.
Read alsoLibya: clashes between rival militias leave several dead in Tripoli
The various transitional governments have failed to disarm the militias and integrate them into the state security apparatus, as stipulated in the 2015 peace agreement.
This new violence has been condemned by the UN, which has called for a cessation of hostility. The European Union has done the same as well as the embassies of five European countries in Tripoli.