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| Gunfire & explosions reported as armed militants storm Libya’s state oil corporation HQ in Tripoli | Gunfire & explosions reported as armed militants storm Libya’s state oil corporation HQ in Tripoli |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Armed militants have attacked the headquarters of the National Oil Corporation (NOC) in the Libyan capital Tripoli on Monday, AFP reports. Company employees told Reuters say there have been several casualties. | Armed militants have attacked the headquarters of the National Oil Corporation (NOC) in the Libyan capital Tripoli on Monday, AFP reports. Company employees told Reuters say there have been several casualties. |
| According to the sources, smoke could be seen rising from close to the NOC offices. Security officials said they were attempting to deal with militants believed to have attacked the building. | According to the sources, smoke could be seen rising from close to the NOC offices. Security officials said they were attempting to deal with militants believed to have attacked the building. |
| "Three or five gunmen were shooting inside the building," an NOC member of staff told Reuters after he said he had jumped out of a window to flee. "Several people were shot." | |
| Security forces took up positions around the offices in central Tripoli, while surrounding roads were cordoned off. Witnesses said they saw ambulances leaving the site. A member of staff from a hotel next to the NOC offices said that he had heard around five blasts. | Security forces took up positions around the offices in central Tripoli, while surrounding roads were cordoned off. Witnesses said they saw ambulances leaving the site. A member of staff from a hotel next to the NOC offices said that he had heard around five blasts. |
| Tripoli has been shaken by clashes between rival armed groups since the beginning of this month. The capital has also seen occasional militant attacks. | Tripoli has been shaken by clashes between rival armed groups since the beginning of this month. The capital has also seen occasional militant attacks. |
| In May, Islamic State claimed responsibility for a deadly attack on the National Election Commission offices in Tripoli. | In May, Islamic State claimed responsibility for a deadly attack on the National Election Commission offices in Tripoli. |
| Libya’s oil production has plunged since the overthrow of long-serving ruler Muammar Gaddafi in 2011. The country has been torn apart by civil war with rival factions vying for power. | |
| Libya's two rival governments were set up in 2014 in the aftermath of the three-year civil war. The UN-recognized Tripoli government is led by Fayez Sarraj - a former member of the Tobruk Parliament. The second center of power is the Libyan National Army (LNA) under the command of Khalifa Haftar, who styles himself as a strongman capable of ending the chaos of armed factions that has gripped the country since Gaddafi’s overthrow. | |
| In June, the LNA recaptured four ports in the oil crescent in the east from armed groups after a week of fighting, handing their control to an unrecognized oil company. | |
| The renegade government's efforts to sell oil through a parallel oil company have been blocked by Western countries. Haftar agreed to hand back control of the ports to the internationally recognized NOC. | |
| The port closure had blocked 850,000 bpd of Libya’s oil (nearly all Libya’s oil production) from being exported from the four ports for more than two weeks. | |
| Libya's revenue is heavily dependent on oil exports. Years of conflict have slashed output to 550,000 barrels per day in June from the 1.6 million bpd it pumped before the 2011 civil war. | |
| For more stories on economy & finance visit RT's business section | For more stories on economy & finance visit RT's business section |