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 also targeting the nearby Al-Sidra oil terminal.
Both sites were seized by a rival, Islamist-led force earlier this month.
Libya has experienced years of violence and lawlessness since the 2011 NATO-backed ouster of longtime dictator Moamer Kadhafi, with rival parliaments and governments trading barbs and militias fighting over territory and the country’s vast oil wealth.
Oil accounts for more than 95 percent of Libya’s revenues.
In September, pro-Haftar forces captured Ras Lanuf, Al-Sidra and two other eastern oil ports in a blow to the authority of the UN-backed unity government in Tripoli.
Haftar backs a rival administration in the country’s far east that has refused to cede power to the Government of National Accord (GNA).
His forces, which call themselves the Libyan National Army (LNA), have battled jihadists in second city Benghazi for more than two years.
Russia has been cultivating Haftar as an ally, with the military strongman making several visits to Moscow.
The GNA has struggled to assert control since its installation in the capital nearly a year ago.
The unity government has denied having any connection to the takeover of Ras Lanuf and Al-Sidra earlier this month, but it said last week that it had ordered oil installation guards who are loyal to it to secure the two terminals.
Last month, Haftar and GNA head Fayez al-Sarraj agreed to form a committee to explore amending the UN-backed deal that gave rise to the unity government.
The deal had given Haftar no role in the GNA, but the strongman made clear he was a key player when he seized oil export terminals in September.
The eastern parliament backing Haftar last week however suspended its participation in political dialogue after what it called “the terrorist attack on the oil crescent”.
Instead, the eastern legislature, which was elected in 2014, called for presidential and legislative elections to be held before next February.
In Tripoli, fresh fighting erupted on Tuesday between rival armed groups, authorities there said.
Gunfire and explosions could be heard in two neighbourhoods west of the city centre, witnesses said, and several key thoroughfares were blocked, leaving many trapped in their homes.
It was not immediately clear who was involved in the Tripoli clashes.
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