Tripoli, June 7 (IANS) The UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) on Saturday welcomed the decision of the Libyan Presidency Council to form two committees to address security and human rights concerns following recent armed clashes in the capital Tripoli.

“These efforts are aimed at strengthening security arrangements to prevent the outbreak of fighting and ensure the protection of civilians, as well as addressing human rights concerns in detention facilities, including widespread arbitrary detention,” the UNSMIL said in a statement.

The Libyan Presidency Council on Thursday issued a decision to form a committee to make security and military arrangements in Tripoli and to “evacuate the city from all armed manifestations and allow regular military and police forces to perform their duties in a disciplined and organized manner.”

The council also issued a decision to form another committee responsible for monitoring human rights conditions inside detention centres and prisons, as well as to list and review cases of arrests carried out without judicial oversight or referral to the public prosecution, Xinhua news agency reported.

Tensions surged in Tripoli in mid-May after heavy fighting erupted between the Stability Support Apparatus (SSA) and the 444 Brigade, a militia loyal to Libyan Prime Minister Abdul-Hamid Dbeibah. The violence broke out following the reported killing of an SSA commander inside a facility controlled by the 444 Brigade.

On Friday, Dbeibah ordered an investigation into clashes that broke out Thursday in the northwestern coastal city of Sabratha.

The Information Office of the Prime Minister said in a statement that Dbeibah had instructed the commander of the Western Military Zone “to start an immediate and thorough investigation” into the clashes.

“The instructions are part of orders made yesterday to assign the Western Military Zone commander to urgently interfere on ground and stop the fighting,” the statement added.

According to local media, clashes broke out on Thursday between rival armed groups in Sabratha, some 70 km west of the capital Tripoli, and lasted until Friday morning.

Libya has been suffering political division and insecurity since the fall of former leader Muammar Gaddafi’s regime in 2011. Authorities struggle to impose their control in the country, as many armed groups operate independently.

–IANS

int/as