Tension gripped the southern Libyan city of al-Qatrun following the killing of 16-year-old Hussein Matar, who was shot while at a petrol station in the city.
Accounts differed over who opened fire on Matar, as residents accused the Libyan National Army’s 87th Battalion of responsibility.
Al-Qatrun witnessed skirmishes and running clashes between residents and members of the 87th Battalion on Thursday evening, during which shots were fired indiscriminately. Several members of the Tebu tribe were seen carrying weapons.
The Fezzan National Political Gathering moved quickly to hold the perpetrators fully responsible and called on the 87th Battalion to “bear the full consequences of this crime”.
The Libyan National Army has not officially commented on the incident. However, a source close to its General Command said the leadership valued the people of al-Qatrun and was working to address their living difficulties.
Rania al-Sayd, a founding member of the Fezzan Gathering, said the incident “cannot be viewed as an isolated event or an individual dispute”.
She described it as “a direct attack on the social fabric and the fragile stability we are trying to preserve in the south”, saying it was intended “to drag the region back into chaos and cycles of revenge”.
Al-Sayd told Asharq Al-Awsat that “any attack on life, property or honor is unacceptable”, calling on the security and judicial authorities to carry out their duties by apprehending the perpetrators and bringing them to justice immediately.
She said she was counting on “the role of councils of elders, dignitaries and sheikhs in al-Qatrun and across the south”.
“Your role today is not ceremonial, but a duty,” she said. “You bear the responsibility of healing divisions, preventing bloodshed and containing the strife before it escalates.”
A delegation from the Supreme Council of Sheikhs and Dignitaries of Fezzan, headed by Sheikh Ibrahim Abu Bakr Nasr, arrived in al-Qatrun on Thursday evening in an effort to contain the escalating unrest, offer condolences and assess the situation in the city.
The Fezzan Gathering called for “the formation of an urgent and transparent investigative committee, the disclosure of its findings to the public and the surrender of the perpetrators to justice without concealment or delay”.
It also called for an end to what it described as “any retaliatory measures or collective punishment against the people of al-Qatrun”, warning against burdening the region with further bloodshed and tension.
In a statement issued on Thursday evening, the gathering called on the United Nations Support Mission in Libya to “fulfil its legal and moral responsibilities to protect civilians in the south and open an independent international investigation into the incident”.
It also urged the international community to “intervene urgently to stop these acts targeting innocent people and put an end to human rights violations in southern Libya”.
Al-Sayd said Libya “cannot withstand further crises and divisions”, warning that “what is happening in al-Qatrun could be repeated in any city if we continue to treat the symptoms while ignoring the causes”.
She also warned against “being drawn into strife and hate speech, or turning the region into a weapon in the hands of those who seek to divide us”.
Al-Qatrun is controlled by the Libyan National Army. The interim Government of National Unity has no presence in the city, which is experiencing fuel shortages similar to those affecting most Libyan cities.
The Supreme Council of Sheikhs and Dignitaries of Fezzan said its delegation had offered condolences to the people of al-Qatrun “as part of its community role and efforts to reunite the people of the region and consolidate unity”.
The council said on Friday that the delegation was received by Tebu sheikhs, elders and young people in al-Qatrun.
It said they discussed the incident in the city and stressed the importance of social cohesion and containing its repercussions.
“The blood of the people of Fezzan is one, and al-Qatrun’s wound is a wound for all of Fezzan,” the council said, pledging to continue pursuing “tolerance, reconciliation, the prevention of bloodshed and the upholding of justice”.
Libya’s National Institution for Human Rights also weighed in, expressing concern over “the rising number of extrajudicial killings in many cities, regions and municipalities”.
It attributed the increase to “the security chaos affecting many cities across the country as a result of the absence of the Interior Ministry and the relevant security authorities”.
The institution called on the Interior Ministry, the al-Qatrun Security Directorate, the Criminal Investigation Agency and the attorney-general’s office within the jurisdiction of the Sebha Court of Appeal to open a comprehensive investigation into Matar’s killing.
It also urged them to intensify efforts to arrest those accused of involvement in the crime and bring them to justice.
Lieutenant General Saddam Haftar, deputy commander-in-chief of the Libyan National Army, previously met sheikhs and dignitaries in al-Qatrun during a wider tour of several southern cities to assess security conditions and residents’ living needs.
