Skip to content

Libya protesters storm parliament building in Tobruk

AFP This picture taken early on July 2, 2022 shows a fire inside the building used by Libya's Tobruk-based parliament building in the country's east, lit up by protesters who broke inside while demonstrating against deteriorating living conditions and political deadlock.AFP
The Tobruk parliament (above) is the seat of one of Libya's two rival administrations

Protesters have stormed Libya's parliament in the eastern city of Tobruk and set fire to part of the building.

Images posted online showed thick columns of smoke as the demonstrators burned tyres outside.

There have been rallies in other Libyan cities against continuing power cuts, rising prices and political deadlock.

In the capital, Tripoli, where a rival administration holds sway, protesters called for elections.

Their demand was backed by the head of the interim unity government, Abdul Hamid Dbeibah, who said all the country's institutions needed to be changed.

United Nations Libya envoy Stephanie Williams told the BBC the violence was unacceptable but described it as a "clarion call for the political class" to put their differences aside and hold the elections that the Libyan people want.

Reuters People protest against a power outage inside Martyrs' Square, in Tripoli, Libya July 1, 2022.Reuters
There were also protests in the capital, Tripoli

The unrest comes a day after United Nations-brokered talks in Geneva aimed at paving the way for a ballot ended with little progress.

Libya has been in chaos since the Nato-backed uprising in 2011 that ousted long-serving ruler Col Muammar Gaddafi.

The oil-rich country, a key departure point for some of the thousands of migrants travelling to Europe, once had one of the highest standards of living in Africa, with free healthcare and free education.

But the stability that led to its prosperity has been shattered and Tripoli has seen frequent fighting between rival forces.

Special correspondent Feras Kilani on what it's been like to cover Libya since Colonel Gaddafi was deposed and killed more than a decade ago