Planned attacks targeting military personnel… Sabotage cell arrested in Libya

Libya’s Government of National Unity announced on Sunday the arrest of a “sabotage cell” suspected of involvement in drone attacks targeting a fuel depot.

In a statement published on Facebook, the Libyan government said that dismantling the cell had uncovered a “large-scale plot targeting the resources of the Libyan people.”

It added that a “security and intelligence operation carried out by the Ministry of Defense” had resulted in the arrest of five people, both Libyans and foreigners, who were involved in drone attacks targeting oil storage facilities in Tripoli and Zawiya, in western Libya, as well as the Zawiya power plant. It provided no further details about the identities of those arrested.

The government added that the Ministry of Defense had thwarted “plans that were on the verge of being carried out” targeting a power plant south of Tripoli and other sensitive sites, as well as political, security and military officials.

The government stressed that these were not “isolated incidents or random acts, but rather part of a large-scale sabotage plan involving multiple parties and targeting infrastructure, energy resources, and oil and electricity facilities.”

Several fires broke out at the site on August 11 following a drone attack, which was followed by further attacks in the days that followed.