Libyan Militias Agreed to Leave the Capital, After More Than 10 Years of Controlling It

Armed groups that have been controlling Tripoli for more than a decade have agreed to leave Libya’s capital.

Interior Minister Imad Trabelsi, part of the internationally recognized government said, after lengthy negotiations a deal had been struck for regular forces to police Tripoli.

He told journalists there would only be emergency police, city officers and criminal investigators in their place.

The deal comes after a series of deadly clashes in the city in recent months.

The deal will see at least five armed groups quit Tripoli by the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan on 9th April, including one based in an area where 10 people were killed over the weekend.

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The militias in question the general security force, the special deterrence force, brigade 444, brigade 111 and the stability support authority are heavily armed and split large swathes of the city amongst themselves.

Libya has been battered by many armed groups who emerged after the overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.

The groups’ visible presence in Tripoli saw them wearing masks and installing checkpoints on roads using armoured vehicles with mounted weapons.

But they were often involved in fighting each other, including one incident in August which left 55 people killed and nearly 150 injured.

They are not under the direct command of the Libyan government, but do receive public funding.

Their operational independence was granted by a special status conveyed on them in 2021 by the government.