Libya: Truce violated, Haftar forces advance southeast of Misurata, at least 17 dead

The UN accuses: “Violation of the arms embargo puts the truce at risk. The transfer of foreign fighters and armaments by some countries present in Berlin continues”. Meanwhile, the oil blockade decided by Haftar has so far cost Libya 318 million dollars…
At least seven men from the forces close to the Libyan Prime Minister’s National Accord Government, Fayez al Serraj, and another dozen or so of the rival troops, the forces under the command of General Khalifa Haftar, died in violent clashes south of the city-state of Misurata. The UN-recognized government accused Haftar’s troops of violating the truce between the parties and the call for a ceasefire at the Berlin Conference. The clashes took place in the coastal cities of Al Hisha, Wed Zumzum and Abu Qurain south of the city located 200 kilometers east of Tripoli. This is reported by sources of a militia allied to the internationally recognized Tripoli government. Haftar forces are advancing about 120 kilometers east of Misurata, near the city of Abugrain. At the same time, an officer of Haftar forces has reported that he has snatched control of two cities, Qaddaheya and Wadi Zamzam, right on the road to Abugrain. Truce violated The government in Tripoli led by Fayez al Sarraj accused the forces of General Khalifa Haftar of violating the truce between the parties. According to Mohammed Gnougnou, spokesman for the National Accord Government (GNA), Libyan National Army (LNA) militias also bombed the city of Tripoli today. Haftar’s men, he added, are also trying to advance into the Abugrain area, east of the city of Misurata, lined up with the GNA. “With its repeated violations, the enemy makes the ceasefire useless,” said Gnougnou. The spokesman of the Ministry of Health of Tripoli, Fawzi Onis, confirmed the presence of wounded people: “Three people were injured following a sporadic rocket launch on a café in the area of Al Kasi in Abu Salim, Tripoli. The UN denouncement The United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) notes “continuous violations” of the arms embargo aimed at the contenders in Libya, violations that constitute a serious threat to the truce. Until “deeply regrets the continued flagrant violations of the arms embargo in Libya, even after the commitments made in this regard by the countries concerned at the International Conference on Libya held in Berlin on 19 January 2020”. UN note The UN mission notes: “The ceasefire of 12 January agreed by the Government of the National Agreement (GNA) and the Libyan National Army (LNA), which led to a significant reduction in hostilities in Tripoli, provided a necessary truce for civilians in the capital. However, this fragile truce is now threatened by the continued transfer of foreign fighters, weapons, ammunition and advanced systems to the parties by the Member States, including some who participated in the Berlin Conference”. “In the last ten days,” Unsmil points out, “numerous cargo and other flights have been observed landing at Libyan airports in the west and east of the country, providing the parties with advanced weapons, armored vehicles, advisers and fighters. The mission condemns these ongoing violations, which risk plunging the country into a new and more intense cycle of fighting”. The economic damage caused by the blockade of the Sirte Gulf terminals and the closure of valves in two oil pipelines imposed by General Khalifa Haftar’s forces has risen to almost 318 million dollars in seven days. Only yesterday the Noc had set the damage at 256.6 million dollars, more than 62 million dollars less than today. This was announced in a news bulletin published today by Noc, the Libyan national oil company, pointing out that on 24 January oil production in Libya fell to just over 284 thousand barrels per day compared to 1.22 million barrels produced before 18 January.