The United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) has condemned an attack on the National Oil Company (NOC) headquarters in the capital, Tripoli.
Witnesses report an armed group to have stormed the building on Monday and opened fire indiscriminately.
According to security officials who were at the site located in the center of Tripoli, at least two gunmen were killed and the NOC chairman was evacuated.
The attack came just a day after UNSMIL hosted a meeting in the western Libyan town of Zawiya, attended by the Libyan Government of National Accord, military and security chiefs, and armed groups present in around Tripoli. This was in response to a recent escalation of violence in and around the capital.
That meeting ended with a commitment from those present to uphold a ceasefire agreed on 4 September, and develop a plan for withdrawing armed groups away from areas which include sovereign institutions and critical infrastructure, across the capital.
In a statement, UNSMIL described the assault on NOC – Libya’s primary source of national wealth – as “a blow against Libyans everywhere”, called on the country’s citizens to end conflicts and, in partnership with the international community, “eradicate the scourge of terrorism across the country.”
Libya has been dogged by conflict since 2011, following the ouster and killing of former leader Muammar Gaddafi.
Gaddafi’s death created an administration void that armed groups and human trafficking cartels sought to fill.
The fight to gain control of different regions of the North African country killed thousands and displaced millions others, crippling the once esteemed state.
After lengthy talks, rival factions earlier this year agreed on a declaration that would create a political framework to pave the way for UN-backed elections in December to end the country’s seven-year-old conflict and streamline the country’s governance.
