Libya out of control, says Italian foreign minister

Following Thursday's heavy fighting in the Libyan capital, Italian foreign minister Emma Bonino said that the country was "absolutely out of control."

On Thursday, the Libyan capital, Tripoli, witnessed the worst violence since the end of the revolution in 2011. It is reported that the clashes left two people dead and 22 injured in Tripoli but this has not yet been confirmed.

Members of two Libyan militias clashed in Tripoli after the death of one of their leaders, leaving at least 10 people injured amid intense gunfire, witnesses and security officials said.

On Friday, the family of the Misrata brigade commander Nuri Friwan, whose death yesterday sparked attacks by his forces and supporters in Tripoli on local brigades in Suq Al-Juma, Tajoura and elsewhere in the capital, issued a statement saying it disassociated itself from any retaliation and called for an end to the fighting.

The clashes erupted in several parts of the city after militia chief Nuri Friwan died from wounds he incurred at a checkpoint manned by former rebels from Suq Al-Juma, an eastern Tripoli district.

To avenge his death armed members of the Misrata militia drove to the Suq Al-Juma district in vehicles equipped with anti-aircraft guns, blocking the main road to the area, witnesses said.

Nuri Friwan, the leader of the Misrata militia is thought to have died in Malta after he was flown in earlier this week for treatment after he was heavily injured in a gun battle.

In an interview with Italian newspaper La Republicca, Bonino said that the situation in Libya was worsening and hinted that Italian oil and gas firm ENI, which is Libya's largest and longest-standing foreign partner was prepared to close its oil wells.

Bonino added that only a political solution could resolve the current crisis stressing that there was no room for military intervention.

After Thursday's clashes, medical sources in Tripoli said that at least 22 people, including civilians, had been injured in the exchanges, two seriously.

Some buildings near to the clashes were hit by the gunfire. The Radisson hotel, used by diplomats and businessmen was particularly badly hit by anti-aircraft gunfire.

Misrata city officials have distanced themselves from the group of Misrata forces in Tripoli that brought the worst fighting to the city since the revolution.

There were negotiations between the elders from Misrata, Suq Al-Juma and Tajoura to put an end to the fighting and Misrata Military Council closed the Dafniya checkpoint west of the city to prevent any armed forces trying to head towards Tripoli.

In a bid to prevent militias moving across the capital, local residents blocked a number of main roads, including the highway. The coast road east of Tripoli was also closed to prevent any other Misrata forces bringing in supplies.

Meanwhile, on Friday the Libyan army moved into Benghazi in eastern Libya, in a show of force aimed at restoring order in the country's second largest city, rocked by almost daily bombings and assassinations.

Security in the port city, an important part of Libya's oil infrastructure, has deteriorated in the past few months with armed militants and radical Islamists roaming unchallenged, highlighting the anarchy in the OPEC producer two years after the fall of Muammar Gaddafi.

When Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi was overthrown and murdered in October 2011, the rebels were hailed as heroes for bringing an end to more than four decades of dictatorship.

But since then, they have formed militias with different ideologies and motivations. The government of Prime Minister Ali Zeidan, perceived to be weak by many in Libya, is struggling to control much of a country awash with arms.

Protests and strikes over higher pay and political rights have shut down much of the country's oil output, depriving the government of the main source of income.

Militias stand accused of being responsible for many of Libya's ills, notably the instability that still plagues parts of the North African nation.

Many militias have rejected the government's demands to turn in their weapons or join the national security forces, and a patchwork of armed groups effectively controls much of the country.