'Sabotage' disrupts telecom services in western Libya: Communications company

Telecommunications services were disrupted Wednesday in western Libya after “a fire and an act of sabotage” damaged the region’s main communications facility, according to the state-run phone company.

The Libya Telecom Company said the incident caused significant damage to telecommunications infrastructure, fluctuating and affecting several services across the region.

Specialized teams were dispatched to the site after the incident was reported and began assessing the damage and carrying out emergency repairs, said the company.

Repair and maintenance work was still underway, with technical teams monitoring the situation until services return to normal, it added.

The company apologized for the disruption and said maintaining telecommunications services and protecting national infrastructure were among its top priorities.

It did not provide details about the nature of the sabotage or identify those responsible. The incident came amid attacks targeting critical infrastructure in western Libya since Saturday.

Earlier Wednesday, the General Electricity Company of Libya said a 30/11 kilovolt substation south of Zawiya in the west was targeted and completely burned, forcing it out of service and cutting electricity to large areas.

On Tuesday, the National Oil Corp. said the Zawiya oil complex had been targeted for a fifth time by a drone carrying explosives that struck a fuel storage tank.

Libya remains divided between the Tripoli-based Government of National Unity led by Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh, and a rival administration appointed by the House of Representatives and headed by Osama Hammad in Benghazi.

The UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) has sought to resolve political disputes that have delayed long-awaited national elections, which Libyans hope will help end years of political division and armed conflict following the 2011 overthrow of longtime ruler Muammar Gaddafi.