RT
Oct. 2, 2013
The Russian embassy in Tripoli, Libya, has come under fire and there were attempts to get into Russia’s diplomatic compound, Russia’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
“There has been an incident in Tripoli tonight, in which there was shelling and attempts to enter the territory of the Russian Embassy in this country,” Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Aleksandr Lukashevich told RT.
According to preliminary information, there are no reports of injuries among the staff.
According to the ITAR-TASS news agency, attackers tore down a Russian flag. The situation was soon brought under control and there are currently no intruders on Russia’s embassy territory. A similar attack on Russia’s Tripoli embassy took place in February 2012 when protesters stormed the compound, condemning Russian and Chinese decisions to block the UN resolution against Syria. No one was injured in that attack.
Nearly two years after Gaddafi was deposed and killed, Tripoli and other Libyan cities have been plagued by violence, lawlessness and factional infighting.
The presence of militiamen remains more visible than actual state security forces in the capital, while vast portions of the oil-producing desert country remain completely out of the central government’s control.
Libya’s prime minister has appealed for international help as the country struggles through political turmoil amid stunted oil exportation which is costing the country $130 million a day.
As Libya continues to be mired in post-Western intervention disarray, Gaddafi’s overthrow has not shown to have yielded a conciliatory political climate as many had hoped.
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