27 killed in clashes between rival militias in Libya

About 27 people have been killed and 106 wounded in clashes between rival armed factions in the capital of conflict-ridden Libya, according to a medical authority.

Some 230 families were evacuated from the area where the clashes took place, mainly in the eastern and south-eastern neighbourhoods of Tripoli, Libya’s Emergency Medicine and Support Centre said.

The authority did not specify how many civilians were among the killed.

The clashes erupted on a Monday night between the 444th Brigade, which is backed by the Interior Ministry in Tripoli, and the rival Deterrence Force after the latter had arrested the 444th Brigade’s chief commander Mahmoud Hamzah.

According to sources in the Libyan capital, calm prevailed on Wednesday after Hamza was reportedly handed over to a neutral party.

Flights to and from nearby Mitiga airport were suspended on Tuesday amid the violence, and classes at the University of Tripoli were suspended.

They are to resume again on Saturday, the university announced.

Libya has been in turmoil since the overthrow of dictator Moamer Gaddafi in 2011.

Two governments are currently vying for power.