adminThe announcement was made by Mohammed al-Megarief, the head of the Libyan national assembly, late on Saturday during a press conference.
“We’re disbanding all the armed groups that do not fall under the authority of the government. We’re also banning the use of violence and carrying of weapons in public places. It’s also illegal to set up checkpoints. We’ve instructed the appropriate government agencies to ensure that these directives are implemented,” he said.
The authorities also decided to put in place an “operations room” in Benghazi bringing together the army, forces of the interior ministry and defence ministry brigades comprising former rebels.
They have called on the army to impose its authority by putting its own officers at the head of brigades born out of the 2011 revolt, which escalated into civil war and toppled Gaddafi’s government.
The announcement of the ban came hours after two armed groups said they would lay down their weapons and leave their bases in the eastern city of Derna.
Derna residents say five military camps are now empty, after Abu Slim and Ansar al-Sharia, the two main militias in the area, withdrew.
“Abu Slim had three camps and Ansar al-Sharia had two. So it’s five. Empty. All empty,” Siraj Shennib, a 29-year-old linguistics professor who has been part of protests against the militia, said.
The Abu Slim and Ansar al-Sharia decisions were said to have been motivated by events in Benghazi on Friday.
“The militia in Derna saw what happened last night and they decided: we will not kill our brothers. So they disbanded. They said they no longer exist as militias in Derna. They will go home and leave security to the interior ministry and army,” Shennib said of Friday’s mass demonstrations that saw Ansar al-Sharia withdraw from all its bases in Benghazi.
Shennib said anti-militia protesters had been maintaining a vigil against the groups in Derna for 10 days, and the protests became much larger after a carjacking three days ago.
Omar Turbi, a California-based Libya analyst, said that the “demonstrations . . . were a clear indication that the majority of the Libyan people are not in favour of extremism”.
Residents blame the militia for creating a climate of insecurity.
Ansar al-Sharia has been linked to the attack on the US consulate in Benghazi last week in which Christopher Stevens, the US ambassador to Libya, and three other Americans died amid demonstrations over a YouTube video deemed insulting to Prophet Muhammad.
The group denies any involvement in the killing of the US officials.
“The people started coming because it has reached the limit. They are saying: we’ve had enough,” Shennib said. “It was a very peaceful operation. We are happy and we appreciate the effort the militias have done to save people from conflict.” — Xinhua.
derick.khumalo