| Keeping busy until the next tyrant arises... |
...a confusing city, one end of which is located in Lebanon and the other end of which is the capital of Libya. Its chief distinction is being mentioned in the Marine Hymn...
on Tuesday, causing widespread power outages, the national electricity firm said.
The fighting underscored the fragility of a United Nations
...the Oyster Bay money pit...
-backed ceasefire reached earlier this month after days of deadly violence between gangs in the capital, beset by turmoil since the fall of dictator Muammar Qadaffy
...The late megalomaniac dictator of Libya, admired everywhere for his garish costumes, funny hats, harem of cutie
bodyguards, and incoherent ravings. As far as is known, he is the only person who's ever declared jihad on Switzerland...
in 2011.
Tuesday morning's festivities centered on the main road to Tripoli's long-closed international airport, according to witnesses including an AFP journalist.
Libya's National Electricity Company said its network had been damaged, causing a total blackout across the North African nation's south and west.
Fighting which broke out late last month killed at least 63 people and maimed 159 others -- mostly civilians -- before the ceasefire came into effect on September 4.
Last week, the capital's only working airport came under rocket fire just days after reopening following the truce.
Mitiga International Airport, located in a former military base that includes a prison, is currently controlled by the Special Deterrence Forces, a Salafist militia which serves as Tripoli's police force and has been involved in festivities around the capital.
Interior Minister Abdessalam Ashour said Monday that a "regular force" would be tasked with securing the airport.
U.N. envoy Ghassan Salame later reported 14 ceasefire violations around Tripoli, but sought to play them down, saying the deal had been "generally respected."
Tripoli's main airport has been out of action since it was severely damaged by similar festivities in 2014.
Since Qadaffy's fall in 2011, oil-rich Libya has been rocked by violence between dozens of gangs vying for control of its cities and vast oil resources.
A U.N.-brokered agreement signed in Morocco in December 2015 established the Government of National Accord (GNA) in a bid to ease the chaos.
But deep divisions remain between the GNA and rivals including military strongman Khalifa Haftar
...Self-proclaimed Field Marshal, served in the Libyan army under Muammar Qadaffy, and took part in the coup that brought Qadaffy to power in 1969. He became a prisoner of war in Chad in 1987. While held prisoner, he and his fellow officers formed a group hoping to overthrow Qadaffy. He was released around 1990 in a deal with the United States government and spent nearly two decades in the United States, gaining US citizenship. In 1993, while living in the United States, he was convicted in absentia of crimes against the Jamahiriya and sentenced to death. Haftar held a senior position in the anti-Qadaffy forces in the 2011 Libyan Civil War. In 2014 he was commander of the Libyan Army when the General National Congress (GNC) refused to give up power in accordance with its term of office. Haftar launched a campaign against the GNC and its Islamic fundamentalist allies. His campaign allowed elections to take place to replace the GNC, but then developed into a civil war. Guess you can't win them all..., who is based in eastern Libya and backs a competing authority.
The GNA last week announced a series of measures to secure the capital and curb the influence of militias over state institutions and banks.