For the second consecutive day, Libya has witnessed intense fighting. Residents of the capital, Tripoli, reported continued attacks through Wednesday morning (14 May), following the death of a key leader from an armed faction. This was reported by British news agency Reuters.
The United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) expressed concern over the violence in Tripoli’s densely populated neighborhoods and urgently called for a ceasefire to restore control.
The clashes began on Monday, coinciding with efforts by President Abdulhamid al-Dbeibeh of the country’s divided Government of National Unity (GNU) to consolidate his power, according to Reuters. Dbeibeh is known to be an ally of Turkey.
If the fighting in Tripoli escalates, other armed factions from outside the capital could become involved, potentially threatening the relative calm Libya has experienced since the 2020 ceasefire.
According to Libya’s English-language media outlet Libyan Observer, the main clashes on Wednesday were between the Dbeibeh-backed Tripoli Four Brigade and the Special Deterrence Force (Radaa). Radaa remains the last major armed group in Tripoli not under Dbeibeh’s control.
Residents trapped in various parts of the city described the sudden violence as terrifying. A resident of the Dahra neighborhood said, “I never imagined the situation would get this bad. To avoid the shelling, I’ve taken shelter in a room with my family.”
Libya has been mired in instability since the 2011 NATO-backed uprising that toppled long-time ruler Muammar Gaddafi. Once one of the world’s leading energy exporters, the country has since been plunged into chaos. In 2014, it effectively split in two due to conflicts between rival factions in the east and west. A ceasefire in 2020 brought a temporary halt to full-scale warfare, but that fragile peace is now under threat.