The east-based Libyan National Army (LNA), commanded by Khalifa Haftar, seized a Turkish vessel heading to the western town of Misrata.
Turkey is the main backer of the Government of National Accord (GNA), which is based in Tripoli.
The military forces stopped the Jamaica-flagged cargo vessel, Mabrouka, on Monday off the eastern port town of Derna, said LNA spokesman Ahmed al-Mismari.
The vessel’s crew includes nine Turkish sailors, seven from India and one from Azerbaijan, he said.
Mismari revealed the vessel entered a “no sail” zone and did not respond to calls from the naval forces.
Turkey’s Foreign Ministry on Tuesday confirmed the vessel’s seizure, warning about “dire consequences” and calling on the LNA to allow the ship to resume its planned voyage, according to a statement carried by the state-run Anadolu news agency.
It is the second Turkish-owned vessel seized by the LNA forces this year, according to Ambrey Intelligence, a British private maritime intelligence firm. In 2020, they seized at least six ships.
In October, the Libyan warring sides agreed to a UN-brokered ceasefire, a deal that envisioned the departure of foreign forces and mercenaries from Libya within three months.
Last month, Turkey and Germany traded barbs over the search of a Turkish freight ship by a European Union military mission in the Mediterranean aimed at enforcing the Libyan arms embargo, in a move Ankara called illegal.
