Libyan National Oil Corporation (NOC) has called on the forces loyal to Libyan National Army (LNA) commander Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar to release Head of the oil workers’ labour union, Saad Dinar, who was abducted by an armed group near the eastern city of Benghazi last month., Reuters reported Thursday.
“NOC rejects all forms of violence, abduction and arbitrary arrest, and calls on the General Command to immediately implement its pledge to free Mr Dinar and return him to his family and friends”, it said in a statement, cited by Reuters.
In April, NOC Chairman Mustafa Sanalla called for an immediate cessation of hostilities in Libya, stressing that they may result in a reduction in oil production and fuel shortages in the country.
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The security and political situation in Libya has been unstable since the 2011 revolution, as the country is still divided between two authorities, with the parliament, backed by the Libyan National Army and ruling over eastern Libya, and the Libyan Government of National Accord (GNA) controlling the other part of the country.
The confrontation between the two authorities dangerously escalated in early April, when the army’s forces announced an unexpected offensive on Tripoli, forcing the GNA to start a counteroffensive operation. Around 510 people have been killed in the violence as of 19 May, and over 2,400 others sustained injuries, according to the World Health Organization.
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