Medical staff and rescue teams in the Libyan capital, Tripoli, are on full alert following the clashes taking place in the city between Brigade 444 and the Special Deterrence Force (SDF), as rescue teams are set out to evacuate stranded families.
The spokesman for the Medical Emergency and Support Unit, Malek Marsit, has told Libya Alahrar TV that they are facing difficulties in reaching all the stranded families after they have made distress calls due to the escalation of clashes in southern Tripoli suburbs, calling on civilians to avoid areas such as Sidra Road, Al-Shouk Road, Ain Zara, and the areas surrounding Al-Farnaj.
In the meantime, the Military Medical teams declared a state of emergency and readiness to provide assistance, evacuate families from the areas of clashes, as the teams’ vehicles were deployed in the areas of Al-Farnaj, Salah Al-Deen, Al- Shouk Road and Ain Zara.
The spokesman for the Emergency and Ambulance Apparatus, Osama Ali, told Libya Alahrar TV that more than 100 families had been evacuated from the areas of clashes in southern Tripoli, adding that their teams couldn’t reach other families who were located within heavy clashes zones.
The Libyan Red Crescent called for providing safe humanitarian corridors for families stranded in the areas of clashes, and the Ministry of Health announced its urgent need for all blood types to save the lives of those injured as a result of the fighting. The Ministry demanded a ceasefire for at least two hours to evacuate the remaining stranded families.
Clashes broke out in the Libyan capital, Tripoli, on Monday between two heavily-armed factions: the Special Deterrence Force and Brigade 444 – both affiliated with the Government of National Unity (GNU) – over the arrest of the 444’s commander Mahmoud Hamza at Mitiga Airport in Tripoli by the SDF (also known as Radaa).
