TRIPOLI, Libya: Clashes between powerful Libyan armed groups broke out in the capital Tripoli, sparking panic among locals celebrating the end of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan with no human loss.
Local media reported that the clashes overnight Thursday into Friday lasted for about one hour but there was no loss of lives.
The African nation is still struggling to recover from years of war and chaos after the 2011 overthrow of longtime dictator Muammar Qaddafi. Although relative calm has returned to oil-rich Libya in the past four years, clashes periodically erupt between its several armed groups.
Though the authorities didn’t disclose the reasons behind the fight, but according to local media, gunmen from SSA clashed with elements of the Special Deterrence Force (Radaa). The media reports said that it began after the SSA detained Radaa members in retaliation for the detention of one of its members by the rival group.
Both the sides released the detainees the same night.
The Special Deterrence Force and the SSA evolved from the militias that filled a security vacuum following Qaddafi’s overthrow.
