Al-Mutrad Development and Local Services and the North Zawia Municipality confirmed yesterday that following the drone attack on the Zawia Oil Refinery, Zawia’s Al-Harsha Water Desalination Plant was also hit by a drone.
The puncture in at least one main pipeline has put the water plant out of service.
North Zawia Municipality condemned the attacks and called for a full local and international investigation.
The Crisis Committee of the West Zawia Municipality conducted a field inspection
Al-Mutrad Development and Local Services reported that the Crisis Committee of the West Zawia Municipality conducted a field inspection yesterday morning at the Al-Harsha Water Desalination Plant to assess the damage caused when one of the plant's main pipelines and its storage tank were targeted (by a drone) at dawn yesterday.
The visit aimed to facilitate a comprehensive technical assessment of the damage. The committee has begun preparing a detailed report outlining the extent of the losses for urgent submission to the Mayor, who has, in turn, contacted the relevant ministries and authorities to initiate the necessary repairs and expedite the plant's reactivation and the resumption of water supplies to residents.
The plant serves the Zawia Centre, North Zawia, West Zawia (Al-Harsha and Al-Mutrad), and Surman (Dahman) areas.
North Zawia Municipality demands local and international action
Meanwhile, in its condemnation statement, North Zawia Municipality said the dangerous escalation witnessed in the city of Al-Zawia, which today reached an unprecedented level with the targeting of the vital water pipeline of the desalination plant by a drone.
What makes this matter even more serious, it added, is that this attack comes directly after the attack on the Al-Zawia Refinery, without any public investigation, accountability, or deterrent action.
This has emboldened the aggressors to further their actions, this time by targeting a facility that directly impacts the lives of citizens.
To this end, North Zawia Municipal Council made four demands of the Libyan authorities and the UN:
First: They strongly condemn the targeting of the Zawia refinery and the subsequent targeting of the drinking water pipeline. They consider the recurrence of these attacks, occurring in the absence of accountability, a dangerous sign of the failure of the international deterrence and protection system.
Second: They hold the Security Council and the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) politically and morally responsible for the failure of the mechanisms for implementing the arms embargo and preventing the transfer of military equipment to those who use it against civilians and vital infrastructure.
Third: They demand an immediate and independent international investigation to uncover the origin of the armed drones, how they entered Libya, who brought them in, who operated and directed them, and who is behind their use.
Fourth: They call upon the sanctions committee established pursuant to Resolution 1970 to investigate any potential violations of the arms embargo and to take the measures stipulated in the sanctions regime. They demand that the Security Council and the UN mission assume their full responsibilities instead of merely issuing statements and condemnations after the disaster has occurred, and that they take concrete measures to prevent the recurrence of such attacks.
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