الرئيسية
By Marie-Louise Gumuchian, Reuters
TRIPOLI (Reuters) - About 100 Libyans surrounded a Tunisian
passenger aircraft at one of the capital's airports Saturday, delaying
its takeoff in a protest at the government.
Witnesses told
Reuters that about a dozen cars drove out on to the tarmac at Tripoli's
Mitiga airport and blocked a Tunisair Airbus 300-20 jet, with passengers
on board, from moving.
The incident was the latest sign of
lawlessness in Libya, where the interim authority in power since Muammar
Gaddafi was ousted, the National Transitional Council (NTC), is
struggling to control disparate local interests, many of them backed by
armed militias.
The protesters were from the Souq al-Juma
district of Tripoli, a stronghold of anti-Gaddafi sentiment during the
uprising against his rule.
They said they wanted the Libyan
government to open an investigation into a clash last week in which
several members of the Souq al-Juma militia were killed.
The
clash happened in Bani Walid, a town southeast of Tripoli which was a
pro-Gaddafi bastion and one of the last places to submit to the new
Libyan leadership.
"People are protesting over the slow action
that the NTC is taking over this. They are putting pressure on the NTC
to take action, and make their message known," said Abdulrazzaq
El-Aradi, NTC member for Souq al-Juma.
A spokeswoman for Tunisair said none of the passengers were harmed.
She
said some of the protesters had tried to board the aircraft but the
captain had shut the door and barred them entry. She said armed men had
said they wanted to check the identity of some injured Libyans on board
the plane.
A Reuters reporter at Mitiga airport said there was no
sign of violence. A few of the protesters had weapons and wore combat
fatigues, but most of them were civilians.
"This is a peaceful
protest. The plane is intact. The passengers are okay. We do not want to
harm anybody," Hosni Berbesh, dressed in fatigues, said.
He said
the aim of the protest was to "explain to the government that we have a
request, that the government should respond to us."
A Tunisair
spokeswoman said the plane later took off with 54 passengers on board.
She said some Libyan passengers had chosen to get off the plane, without
giving details.
(Additional reporting by Tarek Amara in Tunis; editing by Andrew Roche)
TRIPOLI (Reuters) - About 100 Libyans surrounded a Tunisian
passenger aircraft at one of the capital's airports Saturday, delaying
its takeoff in a protest at the government.
Witnesses told
Reuters that about a dozen cars drove out on to the tarmac at Tripoli's
Mitiga airport and blocked a Tunisair Airbus 300-20 jet, with passengers
on board, from moving.
The incident was the latest sign of
lawlessness in Libya, where the interim authority in power since Muammar
Gaddafi was ousted, the National Transitional Council (NTC), is
struggling to control disparate local interests, many of them backed by
armed militias.
The protesters were from the Souq al-Juma
district of Tripoli, a stronghold of anti-Gaddafi sentiment during the
uprising against his rule.
They said they wanted the Libyan
government to open an investigation into a clash last week in which
several members of the Souq al-Juma militia were killed.
The
clash happened in Bani Walid, a town southeast of Tripoli which was a
pro-Gaddafi bastion and one of the last places to submit to the new
Libyan leadership.
"People are protesting over the slow action
that the NTC is taking over this. They are putting pressure on the NTC
to take action, and make their message known," said Abdulrazzaq
El-Aradi, NTC member for Souq al-Juma.
A spokeswoman for Tunisair said none of the passengers were harmed.
She
said some of the protesters had tried to board the aircraft but the
captain had shut the door and barred them entry. She said armed men had
said they wanted to check the identity of some injured Libyans on board
the plane.
A Reuters reporter at Mitiga airport said there was no
sign of violence. A few of the protesters had weapons and wore combat
fatigues, but most of them were civilians.
"This is a peaceful
protest. The plane is intact. The passengers are okay. We do not want to
harm anybody," Hosni Berbesh, dressed in fatigues, said.
He said
the aim of the protest was to "explain to the government that we have a
request, that the government should respond to us."
A Tunisair
spokeswoman said the plane later took off with 54 passengers on board.
She said some Libyan passengers had chosen to get off the plane, without
giving details.
(Additional reporting by Tarek Amara in Tunis; editing by Andrew Roche)