News / Africa

Libyan Army Begins to Disband Militias

Libya's Prime Minister Abdurrahim El-Keib (R) and Head of the national assembly Mohammed Magarief attend a news conference in Tripoli, September 12, 2012.
Libya's Prime Minister Abdurrahim El-Keib (R) and Head of the national assembly Mohammed Magarief attend a news conference in Tripoli, September 12, 2012.
TEXT SIZE - +
VOA News
Libya's military says it has raided several militia compounds in and around the capital, Tripoli, after the country's interim leader ordered the disbanding of all unauthorized militias.

The Sunday raids came the day after National Assembly President Mohammed el-Magarief vowed to dissolve all militias and military camps operating outside the control of the government.  

On Saturday, authorities took control of militia bases in the eastern city of Benghazi after fighting that left 11 people dead and more than 60 others wounded.

Those clashes outside the jihadist militia compounds followed large-scale protests Friday in which tens of thousands of Libyans marched through Benghazi, demanding the dissolution of those militant groups. The protesters ousted the jihadist militia Ansar al-Shariah from its headquarters, and seized the bases of other armed militias in Benghazi.  

Ansar al-Shariah has been linked to the assault earlier this month at the U.S. consulate in Benghazi that killed four Americans, including U.S. Ambassador to Libya Christopher Stevens.  The group denies the allegation.

The attack on the consulate coincided with protests against an anti-Islam video produced by some private individuals in the United States.

Since the fall of Moammar Gadhafi, the militias have grown stronger - boasting arsenals of automatic weapons, rocket-propelled grenades and pickup trucks with heavy machine guns.

You May Like

India, China Pledge to Overcome Border Tensions

Indian prime minister and Chinese premier attempt to move past tense standoff in the Himalayas during Delhi talks More

Burmese President Opens US Visit with VOA Town Hall Meeting

Ahead of his meeting with President Obama Monday, Thein Sein answered questions on human rights and economic development in his country More

Video Washington Week: Focus on Burma, US Government Scandals

President Thein Sein visits the White House on Monday, Congressional probes of multiple scandals are continuing More

Featured Videos

Your JavaScript is turned off or you have an old version of Adobe's Flash Player. Get the latest Flash player.
Your JavaScript is turned off or you have an old version of Adobe's Flash Player. Get the latest Flash player.
Video

Video Boston Bomber Spent 6 Months in Russia’s Most Violent Republic

The news of the Boston Marathon bombings circled the globe, and resonated here in Dagestan, a majority Muslim republic in Russia, on the shores of the Caspian Sea. Last year, Tamerlan Tsarnaev, the older of two brothers suspected of the bombings and a long-time Boston resident, returned to Dagestan, where he had lived for a year during his youth. Dagestan was the land of his maternal ancestors. But in the last two years, this republic of 3 million people has gained notoriety as the region with the highest level of political and religious violence in all of Russia. VOA's James Brooke reports from Makhachkala, Russia.