By Lucy Adautin
Libya’s central bank governor, Sadiq al-Kabir, revealed that he and other senior bank officials had to flee the country to “protect our lives” from possible attacks by armed militias on Friday, Heritage Times HT reports.
Kabir stated via telephone that militias have been threatening and intimidating bank staff, even resorting to abducting their children and relatives to compel them to report to work.
He also claimed that interim Prime Minister Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah’s attempts to replace him were illegal and violated UN-brokered agreements on central bank control.
The struggle for control of the Central Bank of Libya adds another layer of instability to the country, a significant oil producer, which remains divided between eastern and western factions supported by Turkey and Russia.
Earlier this week, the UN Support Mission in Libya called for the suspension of unilateral actions, the lifting of force majeure on oil fields, the de-escalation of tensions and the protection of central bank employees.
