Fierce clashes between rival militias in the Libyan capital Tripoli have raised fears about what the increasingly powerful paramilitaries operating there want.
AMN / WEB DESK
The Fighting erupted on Monday between the 444 Brigade and the Special Deterrence Force (SDF) due to the capture of a factional commander. Mahmoud Hamza, head of the 444 Brigade, was seized by the Special Deterrence Force as he tried to travel from SDF-controlled Mitiga airport in Tripoli. According to reports, a total of 234 families were evacuated from front-line areas in the capital’s southern suburbs, along with dozens of doctors and paramedics.
Meanwhile, officials in the commander’s organization said that Mahmoud Hamza returned to his unit yesterday. This was done under a deal brokered by City elders, to end the fighting between the two armed groups aligned with Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibah’s government. The SDF handed Hamza over to a third faction which then released him to the 444 Brigade. Mitiga Airport, the city’s main airport, which was closed due to fighting also reopened yesterday.
Libya is going through a political chaos after its long-serving ruler Colonel Muammar Gaddafi was overthrown and killed in 2011. The country is now split between Dbeibah’s UN-backed government in the west and another in the east backed by renegade general Khalifa Haftar. A 2020 ceasefire has paused Major warfare between the main eastern and western sides. However, deep-rooted factionalism on all sides constantly threatens the peace brought by the truce.