Libya’s National Oil Corporation said in a statement on Friday that it is ‘deeply concerned’ about its oil institutions being used as ‘war posts’, condemning the deployment of Wagner group, Syrian and Janjaweed mercenaries in its oil installations, most recently at Al-Sidra port.
NOC’s statement also called on the United Nations mission in Libya to send observers to supervise demilitarization in areas of NOC operations across the country.
The United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL), renewed its call for an in-depth investigation into the kidnapping of Seham Sergiwa, a member of the House of Representatives (HoR), from her home in the city of Benghazi.
UNSMIL, in a statement issued on the occasion of the first anniversary of her kidnapping, expressed its hope that the international investigation would reveal her fate or whereabouts and bring the perpetrators to justice, pointing out that the authorities in the east of the country were directly responsible, by law, for the safety and security of all persons in the territories under its control.
“Enforced disappearance constitutes a grave violation of international law including the right to recognition as a person before the law, the right to liberty and security of the person and the right not to be subjected to torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. It also violates or constitutes a grave threat to the right to life.” UNSMIL stated.
The Libyan army announced Wednesday that a total of 225 bodies have been unearthed from mass graves in the south of the capital Tripoli and in the city of Tarhuna and its surrounding areas in 40 days.
The corpses were found in areas liberated from eastern Libyan warlord Khalifa Haftar’s militia, according to a statement by the press office of the government-led Operation Volcano of Rage.
The statement said that since the liberation of Tarhuna from Haftar’s militias, an agency has taken the necessary measures to find mass graves and unearth the corpses.
At the beginning of July, the press office reported that the number of bodies found between June 5 and June 28 totaled 208.
On June 5, the Libyan army liberated Tarhuna, which was being used as an operation and supply center by militias loyal to Haftar.
Hundreds of corpses were found in the city hospital, a container belonging to the hospital and a water well near the city.
The most tragic part in Tarhuna came to light when mass graves were excavated as part of investigations opened by the Libyan government.
Since April 2019, Haftar’s illegitimate forces have launched attacks on the capital Tripoli and other parts of northwestern Libya, resulting in more than 1,000 deaths, including those of women and children.
However, the Libyan government has recently achieved significant victories, pushing Haftar’s forces out of Tripoli and Tarhuna.
The closure of Libyan oil ports and measures to remove mines planted by warlord Khalifa Haftar’s forces dominated discussions between Libya’s prime minister and Italy’s foreign minister on Thursday.
Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj and Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio met in Tripoli to discuss recent developments in Libya and the two countries’ joint cooperation efforts, according to a Libyan government statement.
Security cooperation and efforts against illegal immigration, human trafficking, and smuggling were part of the topics discussed.
The two also spoke about “preparatory steps for the return of Italian companies to resume their activity in Libya, and Italy’s continued contribution to the demining process from areas that were under the control of the aggressor [pro-Haftar] militias,” the statement said.
The officials discussed the necessity of resuming oil production, which remains Libya’s main source of revenue.
Libya’s National Oil Corporation (NOC) said Thursday the cost of halting oil production there since early January has led to billions of dollars in losses.
The NOC said oil production was halted Jan. 17 and losses have topped $7 billion.
An armed group linked to warlord Khalifa Haftar shut down oil export harbors in the Oil Crescent region Jan. 18 — a day ahead of the Berlin Conference in Germany that sought to bring a solution to the Libyan crisis.
Leaders of pro-Haftar tribes also announced that they shut down oil production in the Sharara and Al-Fil oilfields.
At the beginning of 2020, Libya — Africa’s largest oil reserve — was able to produce 1.2 million barrels of crude oil per day but because of the interruption of the pro-Haftar group for half a year, daily production fell below 100,000 barrels and long fuel lines have become routine.
Since April 2019, Haftar’s illegitimate forces have launched attacks on the Libyan capital of Tripoli and other parts in northwestern Libya, resulting in more than 1,000 deaths, including women and children.
However, the Libyan government recently achieved significant victories, pushing Haftar’s forces out of Tripoli and from the strategic city of Tarhuna.
The number of COVID-19 infections in Libya has risen to 1652, with 1227active cases.
The National Center for Disease Control analyzed on Wednesday, July 15, 952 blood samples. The center confirmed that 879 samples have tested negative for Covid-19 and 73samples tested positive.
NCDC also confirmed the recovery of 6 patientsin Sebha, raising the number of recoveries to 379.
The death toll of Covid-19 has risen to 46 after the registration of 1 death in Sebha and 2 others in Benghazi.
The Ministry of Planning along with the US Embassy in Libya have conducted a comprehensive review of the aspects of cooperation between Libya and the United States within the framework of the Memorandum of Intent signed between the US Agency for International Development and the Ministry of Planning in October 2019.
This came during a video meeting held on Tuesday, which included the Minister of Planning, Taher Al-Jahimi, the Chargé d’Affaires of the United States Embassy in Libya, Joshua Harris, and the Country Director of the United States Agency for International Development, John Penel, according to a statement by the US Embassy on Wednesday.
The meeting reviewed the progress made with regard to technical cooperation in foreign assistance programs, and provided a forum to study strategic priorities, said the US embassy on Facebook.
For his part, the Chargé d’Affaires, Joshua Harris has confirmed that the United States has invested more than $ 715 million to support the Libyan people since 2011, with a focus on bolstering Libyan institutions and communities in advancing national stability and self-reliance.
The U.S. military on Wednesday accused Russian mercenaries fighting on the side of eastern Libya forces of planting land mines and improvised explosive devices in and around the Libyan capital, Tripoli.
The U.S. Africa Command, or AFRICOM, said verified photographic evidence shows “indiscriminately placed booby traps and minefields” around the outskirts of Tripoli and all the way east toward the strategic coastal city of Sirte since mid-June. There was no immediate comment from Russia or the Wagner Group, a Kremlin-backed private security company that has been implicated in the conflict in the North African country.
Oil prices fell on Thursday after OPEC and other producers including Russia agreed to ease record supply curbs from August, though the drop was cushioned by tightening global inventories as economic activity picks up.
Brent crude LCOc1 fell 35 cents, or 0.8%, to $43.44 a barrel by 0852 GMT.
West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude CLc1 was down 49 cents, or 1.2%, to $40.47 per barrel.
Both contracts rose 2% the previous day after a sharp drop in U.S. crude inventories. [EIA/S]
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies, known as OPEC+, agreed on Wednesday to scale back oil production cuts from August.
They will reduce their cuts to 7.7 million barrels per day through December from the 9.7 million bpd cuts in place since May.
“Things are getting back to normal on the oil market,” said Norbert Rücker, head of economics research at Julius Baer.
“The petro-nations announced the partial lifting of their production restrictions as oil demand rebounds and signs of an easing supply glut emerge… The economic recovery puts demand above supply.”
The National Oil Corporation (NOC) estimated on Wednesday the total the losses resulting from the closure of ports and oil fields, since January 17th, at $6,831,147,185 billion.
This came in a brief statement published by the NOC’s official website, without any additional information.
