Libya Protesters Release Qatari Ship

Libyan protesters on Saturday released a Qatari ship they seized on Friday at the eastern oil port of Brega in protest against the policies of the state of Qatar toward their country.



Mohamed al-Maghrabi, the head of the Customs Section at the eastern port, said the civilian protesters seized the ship as soon as it had anchored at the port on Friday in protest against Qatar's policies.



He said the protesters released the ship, which had an Indian crew on board, after Libya's House of Representatives (parliament) and the local council in Brega had intervened.



Al-Maghrabi "ed the protesters as vowing to seize any Qatari ships that arrive at the port in the future.



"They [the demonstrators] accuse both Qatar and Turkey of backing Libya's radical Islamist movements," al-Maghrabi said.



The two states had repeatedly denied this charge before.



Libya has been dogged by political instability since the 2011 ouster and death of long-ruling strongman Muammar Gaddafi.



In the three years since, rival militias have frequently locked horns, often bringing violence to the country's main cities, especially the capital Tripoli and the eastern city of Benghazi.



The central government, meanwhile, has appeared largely absent from the scene.



By Moataz al-Majbari



englishnews@aa.com.tr



www.aa.com.tr/en - Bingazi