UN and U.S urge armed group to lift blockade at major oil fields in Libya

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UN and U.S urge armed group to lift blockade at major oil fields in Libya

Mar 7, 2022: According to a report by AFP, the UN and Washington’s ambassador to Libya on Monday urged an armed group to lift a blockade at two major oil fields amid a mounting political crisis.

Stephanie Williams, UN chief Antonio Guterres’s special adviser on the North African nation, said she was following the reports “with concern”.

“Blocking oil production deprives all Libyans from their major source of revenue,” Williams wrote on Twitter. “The oil blockade should be lifted”.

U.S Ambassador Richard Norland also called for the blockade to “be lifted immediately”.

Libya’s National Oil Corporation (NOC) said on Sunday that production at AL Sharara and Alfil Fields had been suspended after gunmen cut off its pipelines.

Revenues from oil production are vital to a war-torn country that sits on one of Africa’s largest well-known reserves. The NOC said the latest blockade would reduce state revenues by about ً 35 million a day. The NOC announced the force majeure on Sunday, a legal measure that would allow the parties to free themselves from treaty obligations when factors such as conflict or natural disasters make it impossible for them to meet.

Libya has been in turmoil for a decade since the 2011 uprising that overthrew dictator Muammar Gaddafi. Oil installations are often attacked or blocked by armed groups seeking privileges, such as jobs or a better share of revenue.

The latest blockade comes as crude oil prices hit an all-time high following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, with Brent North Sea crude hitting close to $140 a barrel on Monday.

It also comes days after the eastern-based parliament installed a new prime minister, former interior minister Fathi Bashagha, a rival to the unity government led by Abdulhamid Dbeibah in the capital Tripoli in the west.

Dbeibah, who has vowed only to hand power to an elected government, on Monday ordered security forces in the country’s west to “take the necessary measures” to reopen the pipelines after they were closed down by “outlaws”.

Following reports that flights between Libya’s east and west have been suspended, Stephanie Williams warned on Monday that “freedom of movement is a fundamental right across the country and all civilian flights should be resumed.”

The U.S. embassy said in a tweet that “the resumption of flight services between East and West is an important sign of national unity at a critical time” and that it was “ready to assist in facilitating this as soon as possible.” 

Aviation officials in Tripoli have not officially confirmed the suspension.

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