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Security Patrols Crack Down on Smugglers in South Libya Desert

A patrol is seen in the Libyan desert. (Counter-Terrorism Force)
A patrol is seen in the Libyan desert. (Counter-Terrorism Force)
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Security Patrols Crack Down on Smugglers in South Libya Desert

A patrol is seen in the Libyan desert. (Counter-Terrorism Force)
A patrol is seen in the Libyan desert. (Counter-Terrorism Force)

A security force in western Libya pledged to crack down on gangs smuggling fuel and weapons and trafficking illegal migrants.

It said it will deploy more patrols to track them in the southwestern desert and combat their activities “that are undermining national security”.

Libya suffers from the widespread smuggling of fuels, weapons, and illegal migrants by local gangs through its vast borders with neighboring countries.

The Counter-Terrorism Force said on Sunday that its backup units continue to carry out their patrols at the orders of Defense Minister Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah to confront the outlaws and bring them to justice.

The 444th Brigade of the interim Government of National Unity (GNU) recently confiscated a fuel truck loaded with 40,000 liters that were “prepared to be smuggled abroad”.

The Brigade further raided 26 locations in Qurayyat in coordination with various security bodies. After clashing with the outlaws, it arrested suspects wanted on drug and weapons trade, illegal migration and fuel smuggling charges.

The security force added that its patrols will continue based on a security plan aimed at cracking down on the illegal operations.

The Public Prosecution had remanded state employees in the Highway Service Company in custody for abetting fuel smugglers.

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MSF Suspends Operations at Key Hospital in Sudan's Capital

FILE - South Sudanese people sit outside a nutrition clinic at a transit center in Renk, South Sudan, on May 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Sam Mednick, File)
FILE - South Sudanese people sit outside a nutrition clinic at a transit center in Renk, South Sudan, on May 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Sam Mednick, File)
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MSF Suspends Operations at Key Hospital in Sudan's Capital

FILE - South Sudanese people sit outside a nutrition clinic at a transit center in Renk, South Sudan, on May 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Sam Mednick, File)
FILE - South Sudanese people sit outside a nutrition clinic at a transit center in Renk, South Sudan, on May 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Sam Mednick, File)

Medical aid agency MSF said on Friday it has been forced to suspend its activities at one of the few remaining hospitals in southern Khartoum due to repeated attacks, cutting off yet another lifeline for those who remain in the Sudanese capital.
War has been raging in Sudan since April 2023, sparked by a power struggle between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) ahead of a planned transition to civilian rule, triggering the world's largest displacement and hunger crisis.
The hospital, which lies in territory controlled by the RSF, helped treat the victims of frequent airstrikes by the Sudanese Armed Forces, as well as hundreds of malnourished women and children in an area where two neighborhoods have been judged at risk of famine, reported Reuters.
"In the 20 months MSF teams have worked alongside hospital staff and volunteers, Bashair Hospital has experienced repeated incidents of armed fighters entering the hospital with weapons and threatening medical staff, often demanding fighters be treated before other patients," MSF said in a statement.
"Despite extensive engagements with all stakeholders, these attacks have continued in recent months. MSF has now taken the very difficult decision to suspend all medical activities in the hospital."
The fighting in Sudan has cut off up to 80% of hospitals in conflict areas, where millions who cannot afford to escape the violence remain. Civilians face frequent air and artillery fire and hunger as supplies are blocked by both warring parties and prices skyrocket.
Medical facilities, including MSF-supported ones that have suspended operations, have frequently come under attack by RSF soldiers demanding treatment or looting supplies. Bashair Hospital has served more than 25,000 people, MSF said, including 9,000 hurt by blasts, gunshot wounds, and other violence.
"Sometimes dozens of people arrived at the hospital at the same time after shelling or airstrikes on residential areas and markets," MSF said in the statement, citing an incident on Sunday where an airstrike one kilometer away drove 50 people to the emergency room, 12 of them already dead.