Fires at Libya's Zawiya Refinery Brought Under Control, NOC Says

General view of the Libyan state National Oil Corporation (NOC) in Tripoli, Libya July 14, 2022. REUTERS/Hazem Ahmed/File Photo
General view of the Libyan state National Oil Corporation (NOC) in Tripoli, Libya July 14, 2022. REUTERS/Hazem Ahmed/File Photo
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Fires at Libya's Zawiya Refinery Brought Under Control, NOC Says

General view of the Libyan state National Oil Corporation (NOC) in Tripoli, Libya July 14, 2022. REUTERS/Hazem Ahmed/File Photo
General view of the Libyan state National Oil Corporation (NOC) in Tripoli, Libya July 14, 2022. REUTERS/Hazem Ahmed/File Photo

Fires that broke out in a number of reservoirs in Libya's Zawiya refinery have been brought under control, Khaled Abulgasem Gulam, spokesperson for the country's National Oil Corporation (NOC), said in a statement on Sunday.

Zawiya, 40 km (25 miles) west of the capital Tripoli, is home to Libya's biggest functioning refinery, with a capacity of 120,000 barrels per day. The refinery is connected to the country's 300,000 bpd Sharara oilfield.

Teams at the refinery are transferring the remaining contents to other reservoirs, Gulam said, Reuters reported.

Earlier on Sunday, NOC declared force majeure after reservoirs at the Zawiya refinery were severely damaged due to ongoing clashes between armed groups in its vicinity.

There was no immediate indications of who was involved in the violence or the reason for it.

NOC posted pictures on Facebook showing firefighting teams extinguishing the fires.

Libya's oil sector, a major source of income for the country, has been a target for local and broader political protests as well as security unrest since the toppling of Muammar Gaddafi in a NATO-backed uprising in 2011.



US Military Carries Out Airstrikes against Yemen’s Houthis

Houthi supporters hold their weapons up during an anti-US and anti-Israel protest in Sanaa, Yemen, 03 January 2025. (EPA)
Houthi supporters hold their weapons up during an anti-US and anti-Israel protest in Sanaa, Yemen, 03 January 2025. (EPA)
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US Military Carries Out Airstrikes against Yemen’s Houthis

Houthi supporters hold their weapons up during an anti-US and anti-Israel protest in Sanaa, Yemen, 03 January 2025. (EPA)
Houthi supporters hold their weapons up during an anti-US and anti-Israel protest in Sanaa, Yemen, 03 January 2025. (EPA)

The US military says it carried out a wave of strikes against what it said were underground arms facilities of Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi militias.

The US Central Command said in a statement that Wednesday’s strikes targeted weapons used by the Houthis to attack ships in the Red Sea.

The Houthis said seven strikes targeted sites in the Houthi-held capital, Sanaa, and the northern Amran province, without providing further details. There were no immediate reports of casualties.

The United States and its allies have carried out repeated strikes on the Houthis, who have continued to target shipping.

The militias say they target ships linked to Israel, the US or the UK to force an end to Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza. However, many of the ships attacked have little or no connection to the conflict, including some bound for Iran.