At least 23 people were killed and more than 140 injured in the fighting, the health ministry said. Six hospitals were hit and ambulances were unable to reach areas affected by the clashes, the ministry said earlier, condemning “war crimes”. The escalation threatens to shatter the relative calm Libya has enjoyed for most of the past two years. The oil-rich nation descended into chaos after a NATO-backed uprising toppled and killed longtime autocrat Muammar Gaddafi in 2011. Among the victims was Mustafa Baraka, a comedian known for his social media videos mocking militias and corruption. Baraka died after being shot in the chest, according to Malek Mercet, a spokesman for emergency services. Mersett said emergency services were trying to evacuate wounded and civilians caught up in the fighting that broke out overnight and continued into Saturday. But the cautious calm seemed to have returned on Saturday night. The health ministry said in a statement that hospitals and medical centers in the capital were bombed and ambulance teams were barred from evacuating civilians, in acts that “constitute war crimes.” Tripoli’s city council blamed the ruling political class for the worsening situation in the capital and urged the international community “to protect civilians in Libya.” The violence caused widespread panic among Tripoli residents. Footage released online shows homes, government facilities and vehicles apparently damaged in the fighting. Other shots show militia forces deploying and heavy fire being exchanged in the night sky. The UN mission in Libya said the fighting involved “indiscriminate medium and heavy shelling of civilian neighborhoods” of Tripoli. The clashes pitted the Tripoli Rebel Brigade militia, led by Haitham Tajouri, against another militia allied with Abdel Ghani al-Kikli, a notorious warlord known as “Gheniwa,” according to local media. The government of Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibah, which is based in Tripoli, claimed that the clashes broke out when one militia fired at another. The fighting, however, is most likely part of the ongoing power struggle between Dbeibah and his prime ministerial rival, Fathi Bashagha, who operates from the coastal city of Sirte. Both Dbeibah and Bashagha are backed by militias, and the latter has mobilized in recent weeks to try to enter Tripoli to remove his rival. An attempt in May by Bashaga to install his government in Tripoli sparked clashes that ended with his withdrawal from the capital. The US ambassador to Libya, Richard Norland, urged a de-escalation “before things get worse” and for Libyan parties to agree on an early date for elections.
