Tension high after 100 dead in Libya's Kufra

Tribal clashes in the southeastern city of Kufra cost more than 100 lives and displaced half the population, the United Nations said on Monday, adding the situation remained tense despite a truce.

"More than 100 have been killed as a result of fighting and as much as half of the town's population has sought refugee elsewhere," UN agencies said in a joint statement based on an assessment mission to the area.

The toll corresponds with estimates by tribal sources, who told AFP that more than 100 people were killed in fighting that erupted on February 12 and pitted Toubu against Zwai tribesmen.

The Libyan army entered the desert city on Friday in a bid to secure the area and stop the fighting. The UN reported that a ceasefire brokered by local authorities on the ground was holding.

"However, the situation in Kufra remains tense," read the statement, adding that some 200 foreign migrants were still waiting to leave the area.

AFP