Misrata: Hundreds of people protested in the Libyan city of Misrata on Friday against an offensive led by Field Marshal Khalifa Hifter to take the capital, Tripoli.
Hifter's offensive on Tripoli could plunge the oil-rich country into another spasm of violence, possibly the worst since the 2011 civil war that toppled and later killed longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi. Some of the protesters in Misrata wore yellow vests in a denunciation of France, which alongside the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, and Russia, supports Hifter.
The Libyan Red Crescent carried out a blood donation campaign in conjunction with the protest, during which people were welcomed to donate blood to hospitals tending to the wounded from the forces of the U.N.-supported government in Tripoli.
Forces loyal to Hifter launched an attack to take Tripoli earlier this month and are battling militias loosely allied with the U.N.-supported government based there. Each is backed by an array of militias and armed groups fighting over resources and territory. Hifter launched his the attack 10 days before a national conference which was held to bring all Libyan factions together.
