Libya gov’t rejects control of oil ports by rival NOC

By Waleed Abdullah

TRIPOLI (AA) – Libya’s UN-backed unity government has rejected a decision by East Libya-based military commander Khalifa Haftar to hand over the control of oil ports to an installation based in eastern Libya.

“This is an infringement of the power and role of the National Oil Corporation (NOC),” the government said in a statement on Tuesday.

It described the Tripoli-based NOC as the “sole legitimate installation responsible for the administration of oil ports” in Libya.

On Monday, Haftar said oil ports held by his forces would be handed over to a rival NOC based in the east.

Ahmed Mismari, a spokesman for Haftar’s forces, said the move aimed to prevent oil revenues from being used to fund militias.

The unity government described Haftar’s decision as “irresponsible and a direct and dangerous threat to the interests of the people”.

“The handover of oil ports to an illegitimate entity fuels tension and strife and does not serve reconciliation efforts,” it added in the statement.

Writing on his Facebook page, Vice-President of the UN-backed Presidential Council Ahmed Maiteeq also said the Tripoli-based NOC was the sole legitimate institution responsible for oil ports in Libya.

Earlier, the NOC decried Haftar’s move, saying his forces “don’t have any legal authority to control the oil ports”.

Libya has been dogged by turmoil since 2011, when a bloody NATO-backed uprising led to long-serving strongman Muammar Gaddafi’s death after more than four decades in power.

Since then, Libya’s stark political divisions have yielded two rival seats of power -- one in Tobruk and another in Tripoli -- and a host of heavily-armed militia groups.