Speaking at a press conference in Tripoli today, the Acting Minister of the Interior, Imad Trabelsi, confirmed that the capital, Tripoli, will be evacuated of security and military apparatus ‘‘soon’’. Trabelsi was referring to militias that have been rebranded by the state with various names.
He added that this includes evacuating the security checkpoints and centres in the entire western region and handing over these tasks to Security Directorates according to regional jurisdiction. Security Directorates are official state police forces part of the Interior Ministry.
The Abu Saleem murders
Regarding the recent unexplained murder of 10 militiamen in the Abu Saleem area, Al-Trabelsi said he had issued instructions to the Tripoli Security Directorate to assign the Criminal Investigation Office to follow up on the case.
He added that “Whoever is proven to be involved in this crime will be arrested, even by force, regardless of his capacity, as the law is above everyone without exception.”
Al-Trabelsi warned that any attempts to destabilize security in the capital, Tripoli, and its surroundings, will be met with force, out of concern for security, preserving it, and preventing chaos following the security stability witnessed in the capital and its surroundings.