Afrasianet - Nisreen Salman - The city of Zawiya has returned to the forefront of Libya's security scene as armed clashes inside the city resume, at a time when local and international warnings are mounting about the danger of slipping into a new wave of violence, after weeks of security tensions and assassinations that brought anxiety back to the local street and raised fears of a widening of confrontations in one of the most important cities on the west coast.
Local newspapers reported that the clashes took place between gunmen affiliated with Mohamed Bahrun, known as "Al-Farr", the deputy head of the Security Threats Agency, and another group affiliated with Ali Farhat, in a new episode of the recurring conflict between armed formations inside the city.
The official authorities, including the Ministry of Interior of the Government of National Unity or the Zawiya Security Directorate, have issued detailed statements on the recent clashes or their circumstances, while local media have circulated information about the continued state of security alert in a number of areas of the city.
In light of the deteriorating situation, the National Institution for Human Rights (NIHR) called on residents living near the areas of the clashes to be cautious and stay in their homes as much as possible, calling on them not to move in the vicinity of the conflict zones until the security situation stabilizes.
The link between Tripoli and the cities of the west coast is dangerous to travel through the areas near the clashes, calling on the parties to the conflict to allow the opening of safe corridors for ambulance and emergency teams and the Red Crescent to reach the injured and stranded.
She expressed her concern about the ongoing competition between armed formations for influence and control, considering that these conflicts continue to represent one of the most prominent challenges facing stability in western Libya, calling on all parties to exercise restraint and avoid any steps that could inflame tensions.
The recent clashes are not an isolated event, as Zawiya has been witnessing a series of armed confrontations and assassinations since early May that resulted in dozens of victims being killed and wounded, according to local and medical sources.
On May 8, the city witnessed one of the heaviest rounds of fighting in recent months, with heavy weapons clashes between rival armed groups near the Zawiya oil refinery, Libya's second-largest refinery after Ras Lanuf.
The clashes hit an aviation kerosene tank inside the warehouses of the Brega Oil Marketing Company, causing a fuel leak and raising fears of an even bigger disaster, as the National Oil Corporation (NOC) was forced to take precautionary measures The ambulance and emergency teams also faced great difficulties in reaching the areas of the clashes, as the ambulance service announced at the time the presence of 23 families stranded in the Harsha area near the refinery, calling on the conflicting parties to a temporary truce that would allow them to evacuate and secure their exit from the danger areas.
In recent weeks, the city has also recorded a series of assassinations and mutual targeting between members of armed formations, while local reports spoke of the death of a number of young men in separate incidents, which exacerbated the situation of tension within Zawiya and increased fears of renewed confrontations.
Observers believe that what is happening in Zawiya reflects the continuation of the crisis of armed formations in western Libya, where security conflicts overlap with competition for influence and strategic positions, in the absence of sustainable and capable security arrangements With the continuation of security tensions and the recurrence of assassinations and clashes, there are fears that Zawiya will enter a new cycle of violence that may be more widespread, especially in the absence of comprehensive security solutions capable of Addressing the causes of conflict and ending the state of armed competition in the city.
