Masked men in military uniform tried to storm the headquarters of Libya's financial oversight agency in Tripoli on Wednesday, in what the country's UN mission called an “unacceptable” attempt to install a senior employee by force, Reuters reported.

Source: Reuters via Sowetan

Footage posted on social media showed a group of men in beige fatigues and hats at the gate of the Audit Bureau's Tripoli offices, which is charged with safeguarding public funds. It was not clear who was behind the attempt to storm the building, Reuters said.

The Audit Bureau condemned the action and said it had suspended work until further notice “pending the resolution of the underlying causes and the restoration of appropriate, safe conditions for the resumption of work”, according to Reuters. “The Audit Bureau emphasises that this decision is taken out of respect for the sanctity of state institutions, and to avoid any actions that might compromise their safety or independence,” it said.

The United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) said “force and intimidation” had been used to try to install a disputed deputy head of the institution. “The use of force to impose appointments to sovereign institutions is wholly unacceptable and represents a grave threat to the rule of law and the independence and integrity of Libya's sovereign institutions,” UNSMIL said in a statement quoted by Reuters.

Source: Reuters via DevDiscourse

A country still split

Libya has known little stability since the 2011 NATO-backed uprising that ousted Muammar Gaddafi, and the country has been split into rival eastern and western camps since 2014, Reuters noted. Armed factions, some with official status, have long vied for control of territory and financial revenues in the Libyan capital, sometimes raiding institutional buildings and abducting staff.

What is solid

  • The attempt happened at the Audit Bureau's Tripoli headquarters on Wednesday and the Bureau suspended work until further notice, according to its own statement reported by Reuters.
  • UNSMIL publicly condemned the use of force to impose an appointment at the institution.

What is only claimed

  • Who was behind the masked men has not been established — Reuters said it was not clear who organised the attempt.
Why it matters

The Audit Bureau guards Libya's public money. An armed attempt to change its leadership by force is a direct test of whether Libya's divided institutions can still operate independently of the factions competing for the country's oil revenues.