Libya to sue ex-Gaddafi loyalists
Rival govt threatens oil tankers
LONDON, July 27, (Agencies): Libya is planning to sue seven former aides of Muammar Gaddafi in an effort to recover millions of pounds they allegedly stole and took with them to Britain after the dictator was ousted in 2011.
Mohamed Shaban, who is acting for the Libyan government, criticised Britain for a lack of investigative cooperation and urged it to be more “pro-active”.
He said the seven would be sued in a UK civil court.
Among them is Brigadier Guima Elmaarfi, who led Gaddafi’s army in Tarhouna, 80 kms (50 miles) southeast of Tripoli, Shaban said, confirming a report published by BuzzFeed.
Shaban said the lawsuit would be based on allegations that the seven misappropriated Libyan state funds, laundered the money and misused public office.
He said Libya was not able to file all the necessary legal documentation because of the chaos after the fall of Gaddafi’s regime.
“Our position is that the British government should be more pro-active and understand that Libya went through a revolution and is trying to rebuild a state.
“It should decide to support that state and understand that they are not able to complete applications like the United States or France would for example,” he said.
According to BuzzFeed, Elmaarfi lives comfortably in a house in southwest London.
Meanwhile, forces loyal to Libya’s parallel government on Tuesday threatened to bomb oil tankers approaching the Libyan coast without permission from authorities in the country’s east.
“We cannot allow Libyan oil to be exported except via the National Oil Company in Benghazi,” said General Abdulrazzaq al-Nadhouri, chief of staff for forces loyal to the rival government based in the eastern city of Tobruk.
“We will target any boat that approaches the Libyan coast without prior agreement with the NOC in Benghazi,” he told AFP.
Oil is Libya’s main natural resource with reserves estimated at 48 billion barrels, the largest in Africa. But production was hit hard in the wake of the 2011 revolt that ousted dictator Gaddafi.
Like many state institutions, the country’s oil company was split into two as rival governments emerged.
Nadhouri’s threat came as the UNbacked Government of National Accord (GNA) based in the capital Tripoli attempts to revive Libya’s all-important oil sector.
His comments are a blow to hopes that the sector would be strengthened by an agreement early this month between rival leaders of the NOC to unify their ranks.
He said his threat was a response to an agreement between UN envoy Martin Kobler and Ibrahim al-Jadhran, the leader of militia set up to guard the country’s main oil facilities, to reopen the key Ras Lanuf and Al-Sidra export terminals.
Jadhran’s militia backs the GNA and has joined GNA-allied forces fighting the Islamic State group in Sirte, 450 kms (280 miles) east of Tripoli.
The terminals were closed after an attack by IS early this year.
In a statement released on Tuesday, the NOC in Tripoli said the Libyan oil and gas sector “should be kept aside from political conflicts”.
It said NOC officials had met representatives of international oil companies including Italy’s ENI and France’s Total in Vienna between Thursday and Sunday.