...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, so it's kind of hard to describe him as a Qadaffy holdover. 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...launched a blockade a week ago, the National Oil Company announced Saturday.
The fall, from 1.2 million barrels a day to just over 320,000, has caused estimated losses of $256 million since the closure of major oil fields and ports in the east and south of the country, the NOC said in a statement.
LNA began an offensive in April last year to seize the capital Tripoli
...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...
from the UN-recognised Government of National Accord (GNA).
Pro-LNA forces blockaded the main oil terminals in eastern Libya the day before a summit in Berlin on January 19 that called for the end of foreign interference in the conflict and a resumption of the grinding of the peace processor.
Exports were suspended at the ports of Brega, Ras Lanouf, al-Sidra, al-Hariga and Zweitina in the country's "oil crescent".
The NOC also denounced the closure of valves at a pumping station in the southwest, which shut down production the major fields of al-Sharara and al-Fil.