BENGHAZI, LIBYA —
The United States and five Western nations have called upon forces loyal to a Libyan general to withdraw from three eastern oil terminals seized earlier this week, drawing a rebuke Tuesday from the internationally-recognized parliament.
The U.S., France, Germany, Italy, Spain and Britain said the U.N.-brokered government based in the capital, Tripoli, is the “sole steward of these resources,” adding that “Libya’s oil belongs to the Libyan people.”
“We also call on all forces to avoid any action that could damage Libya’s energy infrastructure or further disrupt its exports,” said the joint statement, issued late Monday. It also warned against “illicit oil exports.”
FILE – Gen. Khalifa Hifter, military chief of Libya’s internationally recognized government, shown in Amman, Jordan, Aug. 24, 2015.
FILE – Gen. Khalifa Hifter, military chief of Libya’s internationally recognized government, shown in Amman, Jordan, Aug. 24, 2015.
Forces led by Gen. Khalifa Hifter seized control of Ras Lanuf, al-Sidra and Zueitina on Sunday. Hifter is allied with Libya’s parliament, which is based in the country’s far east and has not approved the U.N.-backed government, in part because of differences over his future role in the country.
he oil-rich North African country slid into chaos after the 2011 uprising that toppled and killed Moammar Gadhafi, and has recently been split by rival authorities based in the east and in Tripoli, in the west.
Parliament Speaker Agila Saleh said Hifter’s move was by “popular demand” and was authorized by Libya’s official institutions. He said Hifter’s forces “liberated the fields and the terminals from the occupiers and those hindering exports,” referring to militia commander Ibrahim Jedran, who commands a force known as Petroleum Facilities Guards.
Jedran’s militia seized the oil terminals more than two years ago and has tried to export illegally in the past. It is now allied with the U.N.-backed government, and U.N. envoy Martin Kobler brokered a deal with Jedran in July to resume exports.
Libya’s conflict has crippled its once vibrant oil sector, denying the country an estimated $100 billion in revenues over the past three years. According to official figures, Libya exported a total of 146 million barrels of oil in 2015, down from 531 million three years earlier.
Saleh said Hifter’s forces will withdraw once the Tripoli-based, state-run, and internationally-recognized National Oil Corporation “assumes its responsibilities” in managing oil resources. The oil authority had rejected Kobler’s deal with Jedran.
