TRIPOLI: Armed groups in Tripoli have agreed to leave the Libyan capital and to be replaced with regular troops, the interior minister announced on Wednesday, after a spate of deadly clashes.
After a month of consultations, we reached at a deal with the security groups that they will leave Tripoli soon, said Imad Trabelsi, a member of Libya’s internationally recognized government.
He told a news conference that there will only be emergency police, city police officers, and those who do criminal investigations.
The agreement will see the General Security Force, while the Special Deterrence Force which controls the east of the capital, Brigade 444 in southern Tripoli, and Brigade 111, affiliated to the general staff would leave the capital.
The decision also concerns the Stability Support Authority, a group based in the neighborhood of Abu Salim, where ten people were killed at the weekend, including SSA members.
Armed groups in Libya
These armed groups evolved from the myriad of militias that filled a security vacuum after the 2011 overthrow of Moamer Kadhafi in a NATO-backed uprising.
Heavily equipped and armed, they are not under the direct authority of the ministries of defense or interior though they receive public funds.
They operate independently and have been given a special status by the presidential council and the prime minister in 2021.
The groups have more presence at roundabouts and main street intersections, where their often-masked members install checkpoints, blocking traffic with weapon-mounted armored vehicles.
