By Enyichukwu Enemanna
Turkey has airlifted at least 82 of its nationals from the Libyan capital, Tripoli, following several days of fatal clashes between armed groups, the foreign ministry said late Friday.
“Eighty-two citizens who wanted to return to Turkey were assisted in their departure from Libya and allowed to return home,” the ministry said, referring to “the conflict and insecurity” that has hit the North African nation in recent days.
The move came a day after the Turkish embassy said in a post on Facebook that it was preparing to evacuate its nationals via a Turkish Airlines flight to Istanbul from the Libyan port city of Misrata, about 200 kilometres east of Tripoli.
Libya has recently experienced significant unrest, particularly in the capital, Tripoli. On 12 May, clashes erupted following the assassination of Abdel Ghani al-Kikli, a prominent militia leader known as “Gheniwa.”
The latest violence flared on Monday between rival powerful armed groups the government is trying to dismantle.
The UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) on Friday said “at least eight civilians” were killed in heavy clashes, which took place over the following days, bringing air traffic to an almost total standstill.
Turkey, which backs the UN-recognised government in Tripoli led by Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah, called on Wednesday for a truce and said it was “closely monitoring” the situation.
Libya has struggled to recover from years of unrest since the NATO-backed 2011 uprising that toppled and killed longtime leader Muammar Gaddafi, with the country split between Dbeibah’s government in the west and a rival authority backed by strongman Khalifa Haftar in the east.
