DDemonstrators stormed the parliament in Tobruk in the course of protests against the poor living conditions and the political deadlock in Libya. As several local television stations reported on Friday, the crowd managed to enter Parliament and riot there. Media footage showed columns of black smoke rising near the Parliament building, where young protesters were burning tires.
According to other media reports, part of the parliament building was also on fire. The building was empty at the time of the incidents. According to media reports, a demonstrator drove a bulldozer into a barrier and thus gave the protesters access to the building. “We want light,” chanted the demonstrators. Libya has been suffering from power outages for several days.
Heavy fights again and again
Two rival governments are currently fighting for power in Libya. After a failed coup attempt in May, heavy armed fighting broke out in Tripoli. The trigger was the attempt by Prime Minister Fathi Baschagha, appointed by the parliament in Tobruk, to expel the government of Abdelhamid Dbeibah from Tripoli. After a few hours, Baschagha and his ministers withdrew from the city.
Parliament appointed Baschagha to head an interim government on February 10 in the eastern city of Tobruk. Baschagha was to replace Dbeibah, who has headed the government in Tripoli since 2020. However, Dbeibah only wants to cede power to a government elected by the people. Since the fall of longtime ruler Muammar al-Gaddafi in 2011, Libya has been shaken by violence and power struggles.