TRIPOLI: At least 40 people have been reported killed and dozens injured when forces loyal to Gen Haftar launched air strike in a wedding ceremony in southwestern Libya, media reports said.
Reports said forces loyal to the warlord Khalifa Haftar launched the attack on Sunday in the town of Murzuq.
Nearly 1,100 people have been reported killed since Haftar, based in eastern Libya, launched an offensive against the capital Tripoli on April 4.
On Saturday, Libya’s UN-recognized Government of National Accord (GNA) announced said it had downed an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) of Haftar’s forces.
UN envoy Ghassan Salame has proposed a ceasefire for the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, which starts around August 11, and has called for relaunching negotiations.
The European Union on Friday also called for Libya’s warring sides to establish a permanent truce and return to UN-led talks to prepare for quick elections.
Egypt, a key backer of Haftar, is concerned about the conflict as it has a long border with Libya.
Libya has remained beset by turmoil since 2011, when long-serving leader Muammar Gaddafi was ousted and killed in a bloody NATO-backed uprising.
Since then, the country has seen the emergence of two rival seats of power: one in eastern Libya, to which Haftar is affiliated, and another in Tripoli, which enjoys UN recognition.
(Agencies)
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