Fighting resumes in Libya amid efforts to stop coronavirus pandemic

Battles raged on several fronts in Libya on Friday after a night of heavy bombardment in Tripoli, Reuters reported, citing combatants and residents. After a comparative lull, serious warfare resumed this week despite international calls for calm to allow Libya’s fragmented health system to prepare for any spread of the coronavirus. Libya confirmed its first case of the infectious disease on Monday.

The Libyan National Army (LNA) of eastern-based commander Khalifa Haftar has been assaulting Tripoli for nearly a year, hoping to capture the capital in the northwest where the internationally recognized Government of National Accord (GNA) is based.

The arms embargo on Libya was being routinely violated, according to the UN, with foreign weaponry and fighters arriving in the country to join both sides.

On Thursday, the European Union said it would launch a new naval and air mission to stop further breaches of the embargo.