Libyan tribes block more oil fields and the headwaters of the Man-Made River

Libyan tribes announced today, Saturday, Close the oil fields and the headwaters of the Man-made River, located in the southeast of the country, until the release of the former Finance Minister, Faraj Boumtari, who was detained in the capital, Tripoli, in the latest escalation that would affect the country’s energy and water supplies.

The Council of Elders and Notables of the Southeast said, in a statement, that the tribes closed the oil fields in the region and the sources of the Man-made River in Tazirbu and al-Sirir until Boumtari’s release, holding the National Unity Government, the Governor of the Central Bank and the security services in the capital, Tripoli, responsible for his safety.

In the southeast of Libya, the Sarir, Masala and Gallo fields are located, as well as other fields such as Mabrouk, Hamada, Abu Atifel, Intisar, Nakhla, Nafoura and others.

Since last Tuesday, Boumtari, the Minister of Finance of the former Government of National Accord and one of the candidates for the position of Governor of the Central Bank, was arrested upon his arrival in the capital, Tripoli, without revealing the reasons for his detention, whether political or for his involvement in corruption files, while his fate and whereabouts remain unknown.

The Azwiya tribe, from which Boumtari hails, says that he was “kidnapped” by the Tripoli authorities in response to announcing his candidacy for the position of Governor of the Central Bank, while no response has been issued so far from the Government of National Unity to these accusations.

The decision to close the oil fields located in southeastern Libya will add to the troubles of the energy industry in Libya and the losses of the state’s public finances, in light of the continued closure of the largest oil fields in southwestern Libya, which produce about a third of the country’s production.

Oil and its resources have always been a pressure card and a means of protest used by political parties and tribal groups to achieve their demands and settle their conflicts, despite UN and international calls to distance it from the conflict and to find a fair distribution mechanism for its revenues.