Aawsat – Clashes between the Libyan National Army (LNA), commanded by Khalifa Haftar, and forces loyal to the Government of National Accord (GNA), headed by Fayez al-Sarraj, eased on Friday after two days of intense fighting at the majority of the frontlines around the capital, Tripoli.
Intermittent clashes was reported on Friday as the NATO said it is prepared to help the GNA in the area of “defense and security institution building”, in response to a request by Sarraj to assist it to “strengthen its security institutions.”
“Any NATO assistance to Libya would take account of political and security conditions, and would be provided in full complementarity and in close coordination with other international efforts, including those of the UN and the EU,” said Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg during a telephone call with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, a main backer of the GNA.
The GNA on Friday showed footage of an attack against a grad rocket launcher it claimed the LNA had used in an attack on Tripoli hospital and the capital’s Tariq al-Soor neighborhood.
In a brief statement, the LNA said its artillery struck an ammunition depot in Ain Zara, south of Tripoli.
The United Nations Support Mission in Libya said UN humanitarian agencies in Libya condemned all attacks that endangered the lives of civilians and prevented them from accessing life-saving services.
Acting UNSMIL special representative Stephanie Williams briefed on Thursday the International Follow-up Committee on Libya, convened under Italy’s co-chairmanship. In a brief statement, it called on its members to “uphold the Berlin commitments to ensure an immediate cessation of hostilities, a resumption of the political process and alleviate the suffering of the civilian population.”
It revealed that since the beginning of the year, 17 health facilities have been attacked in Libya.
Spokesman for the UN Secretary-General, Stephane Dujarric, renewed on Thursday the organization’s call for a ceasefire in Libya so that efforts can be focused on the fight against the novel coronavirus.
