Air strikes, roadblocks trap civilians in Tripoli

cairo — Libyan forces loyal to a former military commander have intensified their air strikes on Tripoli, where heavy fighting and blocked roads have left civilians trapped in their homes, officials said on Monday.

Field Marshal Khalifa Hifter’s self-styled Libyan National Army launched an operation to retake the capital on April 4 and has been locked in heavy fighting in and around the city with militias loosely allied with a UN-supported government. The clashes have killed more than 270 people, including 21 civilians, according to the latest UN figures released last week.

Libyan officials said LNA airstrikes have targeted the Nawasi Brigade in the Abu Salim district, about 7 kilometres from Tripoli’s centre. At least four civilians were killed, they said.

They said airstrikes hit alQaqaa military camp in the town of Al Falah, south of Tripoli. The camp is controlled by powerful militias from the western town of Misrata that are also allied with the Tripoli government. Airstrikes and shelling also hit the towns of Khallet Al Forjan, Ain Zara and Al Twaisha, south of the capital, and heavy fighting was underway in Salah Al Deen, an area that saw earlier clashes between rival militias in September.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to brief reporters.

Residents said fighting has been ongoing overnight in residential areas a few kilometers (miles) south of Tripoli. Both sides have used heavy artillery and airstrikes, they said. —