New clashes in Libya despite UN ceasefire call: GNA

Rival forces clashed in the Libyan capital Thursday, witnesses and pro-Government of National Accord (GNA) forces said, a day after a UN Security Council resolution called for a "lasting ceasefire". Flights were again suspended at Mitiga following rocket fire, as fighting broke out between forces loyal to the UN-recognised GNA and fighters of Khalifa Haftar in the capital's south.

Agencies and A News WORLD

Published February 13,2020

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NEW CLASHES IN LIBYA DESPITE UN CEASEFIRE CALL: GNA

Libya's UN-recognized government said on Thursday it is confronting an ongoing attack by warlord Khalifa Haftar's forces on the capital Tripoli.

A spokesperson for the Government of National Accord (GNA) said fighting is taking place south of the Libyan capital, which has been under siege since last April.

The attack comes just a day after the UN Security Council (UNSC) passed a resolution demanding "a lasting ceasefire" in the North African country.

Fourteen countries voted for the resolution drafted by the UK and Germany. It is the first binding text adopted by the 15-nation UNSC since the conflict flared up last year.

The resolution also includes plans for a monitoring mission in Libya and urges countries to stop sending arms to the war-ravaged country.

Based in Libya's east, warlord Haftar's forces launched an offensive to take Tripoli last April but the UN-recognized government has been able to keep them restricted to the city's outskirts.