France strongly condemns Libya's oil ports attacks

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The major Libyan oil ports of Ras Lanuf and Es Sider were closed and evacuated on Thursday after armed brigades opposed to the powerful eastern commander Khalifa Haftar stormed them.

France on Thursday firmly denounced an offensive by "extremist elements" in Libya that rocked oil ports in the northern region of Ras Lanuf and Es Sidra, a government official said.

The clashes between forces loyal to Haftar’s Libyan National Army (LNA) and rival armed groups continued throughout the day south of Ras Lanuf, where the LNA was targeting its opponents with air strikes, local sources said.

Libya's eastern-based commander Khalifa Haftar. /VCG Photo

Military sources said the LNA had withdrawn from both ports.

"The oil resources of Libya belong to the Libyan people. They must remain under the control of the National Oil Corporation (NOC), and their exploitation must be for the benefit of all Libyans," Agnes von der Muhll, the foreign ministry's spokesperson, said.

"France is determined that a lasting political solution will be found in Libya through the organization of national, presidential and legislative elections," she added, stressing that those "who obstruct this process will be held to account."

The LNA took control of Es Sider and Ras Lanuf along with other oil ports in Libya’s oil crescent in 2016, allowing them to reopen after a prolonged blockade and significantly lifting Libya’s oil production.

More than half the storage tanks at both terminals were badly damaged in the previous fighting and have yet to be repaired, though there have been regular loadings from Es Sider.

Source(s): Reuters ,Xinhua News Agency