(Adnkronos) – Foreign minister Antonio Tajani called a meeting at the foreign ministry on Wednesday that looked at evacuating Italians from Libya after fighting between rival factions flared in the capital Tripoli this week following top militia chief Abdulghani al-Kikli’s killing on Monday.
Italian citizens have been instructed not to leave their residences or hotels currently, the foreign ministry said, noting that the embassy in Tripoli is in contact with all Italians currently in the capital.
A ceasefire between the military groups that clashed the past two nights and on Wednesday is now in force, and neither the embassy nor hotels have been caught up in the fighting, the foreign ministry added.
Evacuation “options” are being considered and Tripoli airport is currently closed, according to the foreign ministry.
“Our citizens certainly must be cautious… we are monitoring the situation 24 hours a day because our primary concern is to safeguard Italians,” Tajani wrote Wednesday on X.
“There is no direct danger for them at present…none has been involved in the clashes and a cease-fire appears to be in place currently,” Tajani added.
Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah, premier of the divided country’s Government of National Unity based in Tripoli has ordered what he called irregular armed groups to be dismantled.
Kikli’s powerful Stabilisation Support Apparatus (SSA) group was routed by factions aligned with Dbeibah.
The UN mission in Libya on Tuesday urged all parties to “immediately cease fighting and restore calm”, reminding them of their obligation to protect civilians.
