Loading ...Libya chaos deepens as Isil strikes threaten to halt oil production and government bombs Tripoli airport
By Louisa Loveluck, Cairo
2:18PM GMT 05 Mar 2015
Libya may be forced to cease all oil production after suspected Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil) jihadists attacked three oilfields and the national army bombed an airport in the capital Tripoli.
Libya’s National Oil Corporation has declared 11 of its oilfields non-operational, opting for a force majeure clause that exempts the state from contractual obligations.
The move came after fighters from the Islamic State-dominated city of Sirte attacked the al-Dhahra oilfield on Wednesday. They also captured facilities in Bahi and Mabruk on Tuesday. Located south of Sirte, the two fields had been shut for weeks, in part due to security concerns.
The state-run oil company has blamed Islamist-dominated authorities in Tripoli for failing to protect the oilfields, and warned that it could be forced to shut down production nationwide.
Four years after mass protests hastened the fall of dictator Muammar Gaddafi, oil-rich Libya is divided between two rival governments, each affiliated with a coalition of militias.