Late Thursday into Friday, Tripoli, the capital of Libya, witnessed the outbreak of clashes among competing armed factions, a recurring scene that disrupts the city’s peace intermittently.
The sudden skirmishes, which lasted for about an hour, occurred without clear reasons or known casualties. These clashes took place in densely populated central areas of the capital where residents were celebrating the second day of the Eid al-Fitr holiday.
The confrontation involved heavy gunfire exchange between the so-called “Judicial Police” forces and members of the “Stability Support Authority.”
Local media reports suggest the clashes followed the arrest of a State Security apparatus member by the Judicial Police, which then led to retaliatory arrests of Detention Force members.
Explosions and heavy machine-gun fire were heard throughout Tripoli, forcing families, especially those with children, to flee from parks and cafes in the eastern and southern parts of the city, including Airport Road, Railway Road in the heart of Tripoli, and the shopping streets of Gharb and Nofleen.
The Health Ministry’s Emergency and Ambulance Service has urged residents to stay away from conflict zones.
Since the fall and subsequent killing of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, these armed groups have emerged to fill the security vacuum left by the absence of stable state institutions.
