The prospect of a deal between Libya ’s eastern rebels and the central government is diminishing after the breakaway region shipped its first cargo of crude oil. A North Korean-flagged tanker left Es Sider, the largest oil-export terminal, yesterday after the navy refused to attack the vessel and then failed to impound it. Libya’s parliament then ousted Prime Minister Ali Zaidan in a no confidence vote. Federalists in the Barqa region control four oil ports and are demanding a share of the revenue from exports. “This will complicate a settlement because it emboldens the Barqa people,” said Theodore Karasik , the director of research at the Dubai-based Institute for Near East and Gulf Military Analysis. “It shows their ability to operate independently from the central government.” Libya’s central government has been hobbled by a lack of oil revenue since the ouster of Muammar Qaddafi in 2011. Crude production slumped […]