Lebanese Community in Libya Demands Evacuation amid Deteriorating Security Conditions

The Lebanese community in Libya urged on Thursday national authorities to evacuate Lebanon's expats from the African country, where deadly clashes are currently taking place between rival militias.

The state-run National News Agency said on Thursday that it was contacted by the Lebanese community in the Libya, which urged Lebanon's authorities to “move quickly and evacuate the expats because of the deteriorating security conditions that were caused by ongoing clashes between rival groups.”

"People of all nationalities are being evacuated, except for Lebanese expats,” the NNA quoted members of the Lebanese community in Libya as saying.

The news agency noted that the Lebanese charge d'affaires in Libya had left Tripoli back in April.

Several countries have already evacuated their nationals and diplomatic staff from Libya, amid growing lawlessness and unrest. The latest countries to adopt such measures were the United States, the Philippines, Spain, Brazil, Greece, France, Britain, Egypt and Germany.

The Tripoli clashes, the most violent since toppled Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi's ouster, started with an assault on the airport by a coalition of groups, mainly Islamists, which has since been backed by fighters from third city Misrata.

The attackers are battling to flush out fellow former rebels from the hill town of Zintan, southwest of Tripoli, who have controlled the airport for the past three years.

S.D.B.