Updated on
Summary General Khalifa Haftar, recently appointed head of ground forces in the Libyan National Army.
The newly-appointed commander of ground forces in Libyas national army speaks out over attacks on him and his family by a rival faction, after a second son is wounded in an incident in Tripoli.The family of one of Libyas most senior military leaders was targeted again by a rival faction of fighters on Friday.General Khalifa Haftar, recently appointed head of ground forces in the Libyan National Army, said both of his sons have been victims of recent attacks by Zintan militias.Last week the generals convoy came under attack near Tripolis airport. He said those responsible had been apprehended.The convoy came under fire and the people who opened fire have been arrested and a group of elders from Zintan visited my office and talked to me and they promised that such an incident wont happen again, he said.Following that attack one of his sons, Saddam, was shot in the leg outside a bank in Tripoli after a reported clash with the powerful Zintan Brigade. The other son, Belgacem, was then shot and wounded on his way to visit his brother in hospital. He was also taken to the Zintan Brigade headquarters near Tripoli airport.The attacks follow a pattern of fighting that has broken out in parts of Libya in the aftermath of the fall of Colonel Gaddafi.Militias from various towns have tried to consolidate their power base forged in the vacuum that exists because of a lack of strong central leadership.Some of those armed groups who arrived in Tripoli to help topple Gaddafi have yet to relinquish power in certain areas of the capital, this includes the Zintan Brigade blamed for the attack on his family by Haftar.There are groups that do not reflect the good people of Zintan and these people have either been paid, or are very bad individuals, Haftar said.
Featured
