Libya ex-militias agree to leave capital after clashes

Armed groups in Tripoli have agreed to leave the Libyan capital and to be replaced with regular forces, the interior minister said on Wednesday, after a spate of deadly clashes.

“After a month of consultations, we came to an agreement with the security groups that they will leave the capital soon,” said Imad Trabelsi, a member of Libya’s internationally recognized government.

“There will only be city police officers, emergency police, and those who do criminal investigations,” he told a news conference. The deal will see the General Security Force, the Special Deterrence Force which controls the east of Tripoli, Brigade 444 in southern Tripoli, and Brigade 111, attached to the general staff quit the capital.

The decision also concerns the Stability Support Authority, a group based in the neighborhood of Abu Salim, where 10 people were killed at the weekend, including SSA members.

These groups evolved from the myriad of militias that filled a security vacuum after the 2011 overthrow of longtime dictator Muammar Qaddafi in a NATO-backed uprising.

Heavily armed and equipped, they are not under the direct authority of the ministries of interior or defense, though they receive public funds. They operate independently and have been granted a special status by the prime minister and the presidential council in 2021.

The groups are most visible at roundabouts and main street intersections, where their often-masked members install checkpoints, blocking traffic with weaponmounted armored vehicles.

They have sometimes been involved in violent clashes, even in Tripoli’s residential areas, as was the case last August between the Special Deterrence Force and Brigade 444. The fighting left 55 people dead and 146 wounded.