By Ashraf Abdul Wahab.
Tripoli, 14 July 2014:
The government has condemned the clashes at Tripoli International Airport saying brigade commanders . . .[restrict]had acted outside government control.
Speaking at a press conference last night government spokesman Ahmed Al-Amin called for an immediate end to hostilities between armed groups in the capital saying the spilling of blood, particularly during the holy month of Ramadan, was deplorable. A total of six dead and 25 wounded in today’s clashes has been reported by health officials.
Amin said the government had asked the Ministry of Interior and the General Chief of staff to ensure security and added that Tripoli’s hospitals had been put on emergency footing to deal with the crisis.
He asked all Libyans to remain calm over this trying period and called on the international community, civil society organisations and all parties involved in the clashes to engage in meaningful dialogue with the government.
Prime Minister Abdullah Al-Thinni today met with representatives from the United Nations, the Arab League and the European Union along with the British, French, Italian and German Ambassadors over the crisis. He expressed his deep regret at the outbreak of violence in the capital and assured the representatives the government was doing all within its power to end the fighting.
The United Nations Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) has called for the “cessation of hostilities in Tripoli, Benghazi and throughout Libya”. It said: “Libyan authorities, political forces and armed groups are called upon to put an end to the plight of the civilians.”
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