Militias clash in Tripoli

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Rival militias clashed in the Libyan capital Tripoli with at least five people killed and 20 wounded, the health ministry said, splintering a four-month-old, UN-brokered ceasefire.

Armoured vehicles were seen in southern Tripoli where militia groups fought for a month until September, part of widespread factional conflict plaguing Libya since the 2011 uprising.

A United Nations-engineered ceasefire agreed then held for the most part until now.

On Wednesday a militia known as the 7th Brigade, or Kaniyat, and a collection of factions called Tripoli Protection Force started fighting in the same southern district.

The 7th Brigade and allied groups triggered the August fighting in a bid to challenge dominance of four “super militias”, including the Tripoli Protection Force, in the streets of the capital.

The UN mission in Libya warned against any breach of the ceasefire.

“Any party initiating a confrontation will be held fully responsible,” it said.

The internationally-recognised government in Tripoli, backed by the United Nations, has been working on a new security plan since the ceasefire but achieved little as Libya lacks a national police force or army.