The Prime Minister of the government designated by the House of Representatives (HoR) Osama Hammad accused the Government of National Unity of being behind the armed unrest taking place in Benghazi, describing the force of Al-Mahdi Al-Barghathi as a rogue gang that came with direct funding from elements affiliated with the government in Tripoli.
Hammad said in a statement on Monday evening that the government in Tripoli was not satisfied with national unity after the Derna disaster and was trying to target the social fabric by all means. He criticized the UN mission’s statement in which it expressed its concern for the lives of civilians in Benghazi, amid the continuing telecommunications cut-off, saying that a limited security operation against a sabotage group for two hours on Friday evening against the Al-Salmani cell was turned by the UN mission into continuous clashes.
The UN mission to Libya expressed its concern about the conditions of civilians in Benghazi, and the continued telecommunications cut-off since Friday, noting that it was investigating the validity of the reports received regarding civilian casualties.
Benghazi witnessed a telecommunications cut-off blackout coinciding with armed clashes in the Al-Salmani area, where he lives, and where the home of the former Defense Minister of the Government of National Accord, Mahdi Al-Barghathi, is located.
In his first reaction to the clashes, the Prime Minister of the Government of National Unity, Abdul Hamid Dbeibah said that they had reports indicating the occurrence of armed clashes in Benghazi and the deliberate cutting off of telecommunications completely, which left the city completely isolated from the world.
Dbeibah called on the Attorney General to open an investigation into the unrest, calling on the security authorities in Benghazi to do their duty to protect the people of Benghazi.
