Category: Libya

Armed protesters who have seized oil ports in eastern Libya said on Saturday they had started exporting oil, bypassing the Tripoli government, with their first shipment going to a North Korean-flagged tanker. Officials at state-run National Oil Corp (NOC) confirmed earlier on Saturday that the tanker was docked at the Es-Sider port, which is under the control of a rebel group demanding autonomy and a greater share of Libya’s oil wealth. "We started exporting oil. This is our first shipment," said a spokesman for the protesters, who have seized Es-Sider and two other ports. The tanker Morning Glory, which had been circling off the Libyan coast for days, was preparing to load crude at the port, said an oil official, asking not to be identified. Oil workers at the port confirmed the docking. "We have informed the government and the defense ministry so they can take […]

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British energy company BP said in an annual report it was exploring other options for exploration drilling onshore in Libya because of security concerns. BP in 2007 secured exploration and production-sharing agreements with the Libyan government for the onshore Ghadames basin and the offshore Sirte basin. In an annual report filed Thursday, the company said planning for offshore exploration drilling was continuing. "With respect to the onshore exploration drilling program, a security review in June concluded that this could not be safely and securely delivered by BP at this time," it said. "Alternative approaches are being considered." London’s commercial ties to Tripoli were questioned following the 2009 release of Abdelbaset al-Megrahi , the only person convicted of the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland. BP was accused of playing a role in the decision to release him, though the allegations […]

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Dozens of armed rioters stormed into the Libyan Parliament in Tripoli on Sunday, setting fire to the grounds, looting furniture and wounding a prominent lawmaker in a spasm of anger at the clotted and chaotic transition after the ouster of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi . Less than two weeks after a vote to elect an assembly charged with writing a new constitution, the bedlam at Parliament dampened hopes of renewed momentum for the transition, or even of a break from the violence. Security guards outside the building encouraged the rioters, witnesses said, and looters running amok suspended the symbolic white chair of the parliamentary leader from a lamppost. Later, they set the chair on fire. In Benghazi, Libya, at least three people were killed by gunshots, according to news reports, adding to an accelerating pattern of assassinations of former Qaddafi security officers and foreigners. Together, the events appeared […]

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A Libyan security official says gunmen have shot dead an officer in the air defense branch in the eastern city of Benghazi. The official says Colonel Wanis Massoud al-Barghathi was gunned down Friday night. He didn’t provide further details, and spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to brief the media. A wave of assassinations and bombings has targeted police and army officers in Benghazi, a stronghold of militias with roots in the rebel brigades that fought against slain dictator Moammar Gadhafi. Some of the groups are Islamic hard-liners with al-Qaida links. © 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Learn more about our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use .

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Libya’s oil production has tumbled to about 230,000 barrels per day after armed groups shut down the el-Sharara oil field in the Murzuq desert in the southwest, adding to a crippling seven-month oil crisis centered in the rebellious east. The shutdown of el-Sharara, one of Libya’s biggest fields with a normal output of 340,000 bpd, was a serious setback to efforts by the problem-plagued transitional government to push national production back to the 1.4 million bpd it achieved last summer. But about 2 1/2 years after Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi was driven from power in a NATO-backed uprising, the North African producer remains mired in lawlessness and anarchy, with the government powerless to restore stability or control dozens of heavily armed militias and tribal groups. The current production level marked a significant decline from the 370,000 bpd the National Oil Corp. announced last […]

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Libya’s oil production has tumbled to about 230,000 barrels per day after armed groups shut down the el-Sharara oil field in the Murzuq desert in the southwest, adding to a crippling seven-month oil crisis centered in the rebellious east. The shutdown of el-Sharara, one of Libya’s biggest fields with a normal output of 340,000 bpd, was a serious setback to efforts by the problem-plagued transitional government to push national production back to the 1.4 million bpd it achieved last summer. But about 2 1/2 years after Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi was driven from power in a NATO-backed uprising, the North African producer remains mired in lawlessness and anarchy, with the government powerless to restore stability or control dozens of heavily armed militias and tribal groups. The current production level marked a significant decline from the 370,000 bpd the National Oil Corp. announced last […]

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ibya’s oil production has fallen to 230,000 barrels a day from 570,000 bpd due to the closure of the el-Sharara field following protests, state-owned National Oil Corp (NOC) said. "The country’s oil production has fallen to 230,000 bpd after the closure on Thursday evening of the oilfield at el-Sharara," which has an output of 330,000 bpd, NOC spokesman Mohamed al-Harairi said on Sunday. Harairi added that the field had to shut down because "protest movements near the… wells no longer ensure the optimal security conditions," without giving further details. It was repeatedly shut down by protesters as a way to pressure the weak central government into political and financial demands. Relaunch of production at el-Sharara in early January had pushed Libya’s output up to 570,000 bpd, when protesters in the area lifted their blockade of the site. It was considered as a […]

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Libyans trickled to the polls on Thursday to elect an assembly to draft a constitution , the paltry turnout reflecting deep political disillusion with the chaos pervading Libya since Muammar Gaddafi’s 42-year rule ended in 2011. Of the one million people who had registered to vote, less than 498,000 cast ballots, the election commission said, a number far lower than the three million who did so before the 2012 parliamentary election. Libyans voted on who should make up the panel to write a new charter that will cover key issues such as Libya’s system of government, the status of ethnic minorities and the role of Islamic law. But live footage from Libyan television cameras in major polling stations across the North African country showed mostly empty rooms. After four hours of polling, election organizers said that turnout for the vote had reached just 18 percent. United Nations’ envoy Tarek Mitri urged Libyans […]

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For the second time since the overthrow of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi two and a half years ago, Libyans are being asked to go to the polls to elect lawmakers responsible for preparing a new constitution. On Thursday, increasingly frustrated voters will directly elect a 60-member assembly to draft the charter after Parliament failed to appoint the body as originally planned. “People are saying: ‘What happened?’ ” said Claudia Gazzini, a senior analyst for the International Crisis Group who is based in Libya. Disillusioned with the lack of progress, Libyans are disinclined to come out and vote, she said. “They are saying: ‘I’m not going to dip my hand in the ink this time.’ ” Precious little has been achieved in Libya since the war that killed Colonel Qaddafi and ended his 42 years of autocratic rule. The country held its first free elections amid much euphoria […]

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Two powerful militias that earlier demanded that Libya’s interim parliament step down or face arrest now say the country’s political factions have 72 hours to resolve their crisis, while the United Nations urged Wednesday that the deadlock be resolved by holding new elections. The demands issued Tuesday by the Al-Qaaqaa and al-Sawaaq militias, which some politicians likened to an attempted coup, brought the restive North African country’s long-running political showdown to a head. Parliament is split between Islamist and non-Islamist blocs. Its mandate was to have expired this month, but the Islamists led a motion to extend its mandate by another year. Under street protesters’ pressure, the parliament voted to hold early elections in the spring. But many are angry that parliament, widely viewed as a failed institution, should hold power until then. The two militias at first said that parliament had until 9 p.m. […]

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