TRIPOLI (Reuters): Eastern Libyan forces on Thursday took full control of Gharyan, a town about 100 km (60 miles) south of the capital Tripoli, bringing their conflict with Libya’s internationally recognized government to a potentially dangerous new level. The capture of Gharyan after skirmishes on Wednesday with forces allied to Tripoli Prime Minister Fayez al-Serraj followed a rapid thrust westwards by Khalifa Haftar’s Libyan National Army (LNA) from his eastern stronghold of Benghazi.
The developments signified a serious escalation of the power tussle in Libya that has dragged on since the overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011. Libya has been divided between the Western-backed government in Tripoli and a parallel administration allied to Haftar since Gaddafi’s downfall. “We fully control Gharyan and right now as we speak I’m driving through the town,” Abdelsalam al-Hassi, commander of the operation to secure western Libya, told Reuters by telephone.
