Clashes escalate in Libya’s capital Tripoli, killing 26

A Libyan official says fighting between rival militias in the capital has killed at least 26 people, including civilians.

Widad Abu Niran, a Health Ministry spokesman, said Thursday that another 75 people have been wounded in the fighting, which began Monday and pits armed groups from Tripoli against other groups from a town to the south.

Militias supported by the UN-backed government in Tripoli proposed a cease-fire on Wednesday.

Since the 2011 NATO-backed ouster of dictator Muammar Gaddafi, Libya has been divided between the unity government in Tripoli and a rival administration in the east of the country.

A myriad of militias, jihadist groups and people traffickers have taken advantage of the chaos.

Transitional authorities, including the GNA, have tried but failed to integrate the armed forces into a regular army, relying on militias to ensure the capital's security.

In the summer of 2017, pro-GNA militias expelled several rival groups from the capital.