Last week, the Government of National Accord channelled a meaningful amount of funds into its Ministry of Defence (MoD), while minor incidents of armed violence occurred in western and southern Libya.
On 29 December, the parallel interim government in eastern Libya temporarily appointed a new chief for the Internal Security Department (ISD), Brigadier General Muhammed Hassan Kamil al-Tarhouni (al-Furjani), replacing General Khalifa Houssni al-Derissi. On 31 December, the Presidential Council (PC) issued a decree allocating 1 billion LYD to its Ministry of Defence (MoD) for ‘national security, support of counterterrorism operations and protection of vital infrastructure’. On 3 January, armed skirmishes occurred in Sebha between the Libyan National Army (LNA)-affiliated 116th and GNA-affiliated 6th Infantry Brigades. The shootout, which is alleged to have lasted less than a minute, did not result in any casualties and was quickly contained. On 3 January, it was reported that an armed group described as -Madkhali Salafist had attacked the Zakri cemetery in the city of Surman. The group destroyed the shrine of Zakaria al-Mahjoub as well as a number of other tombs and historical items at the shrine’s mosque. The identity of the perpetrators remains unknown. |