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Libya National Army Retreats from Key Oil Port

by VOA News

   In Libya, fighting was continuing Saturday for control of the country's
   oil facilities around the city of Benghazi. The eastern-based Libyan
   National Army, or the LNA, had given up control Friday of at least one
   major oil port it had captured last year.

   The withdrawal followed an offensive by a faction known as the Benghazi
   Defense Brigades, or BDB.

   Ahmed al-Mismari, an LNA spokesman, told the Reuters news agency that
   the LNA responded to the oil port attacks by launching airstrikes in
   Ras Lanuf, Es Sidra, Ben Jawad and Harawa.

   "The attackers were armed with modern tanks," Mismari told the French
   news agency. "But the battle in ongoing."

   Efforts to take over Libya's oil ports raise the prospect of increased
   violence in the region.

   After the LNA seized four ports in September, Libya's oil production
   sharply increased, presenting a challenge to the authority of the
   United Nations-backed government in Tripoli.

   The internationally-backed Government of National Accord controls part
   of Tripoli, while rival powers compete for other parts of the country.