Eastern Libyan commander’s forces seize key oil ports
BENGHAZI (Reuters) – Forces loyal to east Libyan commander Khalifa Haftar on Sunday seized at least two key oil ports from a rival force loyal to the UN-backed government, risking a new conflict over the OPEC nation’s resources.
Ahmed Mismari, a spokesman for Haftar’s self-styled Libyan National Army, said its fighters had full control of Es Sider, Ras Lanuf, Brega and Zueitina after launching an early morning military operation on the eve of the Muslim holiday of Id.
The attacks on Libya’s major oil ports by Haftar, who opposes the UN-backed Government of National Accord, could derail efforts to restart production. Those efforts are seen as critical to saving Libya’s economy and helping the Government of National Accord survive.
The National Oil Corporation in Tripoli confirmed that the Libyan National Army had control of Es Sider and Ras Lanuf, while the situation in Brega and Zueitina could not be independently verified.
Armed conflict, political disputes and terrorist attacks have reduced Libya’s oil production to about 200,000 barrels per day from the 1.6 million it was producing before an uprising toppled Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.
Western states have backed the Government of National Accord to stabilize a country where chaos allowed terrorists and migrant smugglers to operate across large swathes of territory.
But Haftar, a former army general who has been a divisive figure in post-Gaddafi Libya, has resisted attempts to integrate him into unified armed forces and overcome divisions between factions.
Many in western Libya and Tripoli criticize Haftar as a former Gaddafi ally bent on establishing a military dictatorship, but he has become a political figurehead for many in the east who feel abandoned by the capital.
A government and parliament based in the eastern part of the country still resist the Government of National Accord’s authority in Tripoli and they have in the past tried to sell crude oil themselves.
In a statement released late on Sunday, the Government of National Accord’s Presidential Council called the attacks an “unjustified escalation” that would “prolong the period of conflict.”