[Home] [Headlines] [Latest Articles] [Latest Comments] [Post] [Mail] [Sign-in] [Setup] [Help] [Register]
|
Status: Not Logged In; Sign In
International News Title: Libya chaos deepens as Isil strikes threaten to halt oil production and government bombs Tripoli airport Libya’s National Oil Corporation has declared 11 of its oilfields non-operational, opting for a force majeure clause that exempts the state from contractual obligations. The move came after fighters from the Islamic State-dominated city of Sirte attacked the al-Dhahra oilfield on Wednesday. They also captured facilities in Bahi and Mabruk on Tuesday. Located south of Sirte, the two fields had been shut for weeks, in part due to security concerns. The state-run oil company has blamed Islamist-dominated authorities in Tripoli for failing to protect the oilfields, and warned that it could be forced to shut down production nationwide. Four years after mass protests hastened the fall of dictator Muammar Gaddafi, oil-rich Libya is divided between two rival governments, each affiliated with a coalition of militias. Armed takeovers of Libya’s oilfields have become commonplace in the security vacuum that spread across the country after Gaddafi’s downfall. Militants including Isil have used the seizures to try and exert pressure on politicians from both sides of the divide. An attack on the Mabruk field last month left at least 12 people dead. Production across Libya currently stands at between 100-200,000 barrels per day, far below the 1.6 million it produced daily before Gaddafi’s overthrow. The proceeds have fuelled Libya’s raging conflict, helping to pay salaries to militias on both sides of the divide. “If that lifeline of cash were cut off it would be like removing oxygen from a fire,” said Jason Pack, a researcher of Middle Eastern history at the University of Cambridge. “You can’t talk about Isil in Libya or the closing of the oil terminals and fields without talking about the political conflict. Isil is a symptom of the breakdown of the political track, and the inability to export oil is a symptom of the violence that has resulted from its breakdown.” Warplanes from Libya’s internationally recognised government ran bombing raids over a Tripoli airport on Thursday, hours before the country’s last-ditch peace talks in Morocco were due to begin. The air strikes underscored the depth of mistrust between the two sides, taking place even as delegates were gathering for the talks. Forces loyal to Libya’s internationally recognised government later said they would halt air strikes for three days to ease tensions as the delegates met in person. UN special envoy to Libya Bernardino Leon warned on Wednesday that the troubled north African nation faced disintegration if the peace talks failed. “Unless Libya’s leaders act quickly and decisively, the risks to their country’s national unity and territorial integrity are real and imminent,” he told the Security Council. Poster Comment: What little oil revenue remains solely funds the two rival militias. The neocons' delusional fantasies of the glorious Arab Spring is reveals as a tragic dung heap. Obama and Xlinton should be deported to face war crimes trials in the Hague for their role in Libya's destruction.
Post Comment Private Reply Ignore Thread |
|
|
[Home] [Headlines] [Latest Articles] [Latest Comments] [Post] [Mail] [Sign-in] [Setup] [Help] [Register]
|