Libya: Gas complex attacked by armed group

Libyaherald.com reports the Mellitah oil and gas complex, 22 kilometres west of Zawia, was attacked early this morning by an armed group. A number of soldiers guarding it are said to have been injured including the battalion commander, named as Colonel Gomaa Abdel Jalil. As many as 20 vehicles from the battalion, No. 103 from the Western Military Region, were stolen in the raid, a source at the General Chief of Staff told the Libya Herald. So far there has been no indication as who the dawn raiders are. However, at the beginning of March, rival militias from Zintan and Zuara fought for two days over who should provide “protection” for the complex, a joint venture between the National Oil Company and Italian state energy giant ENI, the biggest foreign energy operator in Libya. The clashes left one man dead and two injured and forced the complex’s temporary closure. Read article