Heavy fighting around Tripoli airport has hit a fuel tanker, as an escalation of violence in Libya damages the oil infrastructure for the first time. The fuel tanker, which was close to the airport, burst into flames after being hit by a missile, according to statements and videos posted on the airport's Facebook page. Underscoring Libya's chaos, acting Prime Minister Abdullah al-Thinni and other ministers said were prevented by militias from using the Mitiga Airport to fly to the eastern city of Tobruk. Mitiga, used mostly for military and oil company flights, has been opened to limited international flights since the clashes erupted and Tripoli International Airport was closed.
The undesired consequences as a result of the fighting taking places keep rising. Turkey may evacuate its embassy in the Libyan capital of Tripoli; Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu said on Thursday, a day after his ministry advised all Turkish citizens to leave the North African country due to the worsening security situation. This is a big blow to the fragile Libyan government, which has witnessed the exodus of a few hundred Turks in Libya in recent months. Adding to the diplomatic blow are reports that the government is preparing a new pricing strategy for its crude exports that may include further discounts after a sales offer last week failed because potential buyers offered “unacceptable” prices, according to state-run National Oil Corporation. Libya plans to offer different crude prices before the end of next month that will compensate customers for the additional risk of loading oil in the country, Ahmed Shawki, marketing director at National Oil, said by phone from Tripoli today. The country reduced July export prices for seven grades of crude by as much as US $1.90 a barrel, according to a price list from National Oil obtained by Bloomberg News on July 18.
Although the situation seems extremely dire, there are grassroots movements on the ground that may be decisive in breaking the stalemate on the ground. Reports are circulating that Zintan’s tribal elders travelled to Al Baida to discuss the situation with some of Eastern Libya’s elders. Brigades from the southwestern city of Kufra have also threatened that they will side with the Zintan militias in order to stop the escalation of violence in the capital city.