Libya fully reopens east-west highway

Libya on Friday fully reopened the coastal highway linking the country's east and west, after unblocking parts in areas controlled by forces loyal to military strongman Khalifa Haftar.

"Everything will be done to ensure the safety of travellers," a joint military commission from rival camps said in a statement.

The highway was mostly reopened last month in a move interim Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah at the time said would help to "turn a page" after a decade of conflict.

The highway connects the war-torn North African country's border with Tunisia to its frontier with Egypt.

A 300-kilometre (186-mile) stretch of the road between the cities of Misrata and Sirte was cut off in 2019 as Haftar's eastern-based forces launched an offensive to seize Tripoli.

Libya was gripped by violence and political turmoil in the aftermath of the 2011 NATO-backed uprising that ousted and killed dictator Moamer Kadhafi.

In recent years, the oil-rich country was split between two rival administrations backed by foreign powers and myriad militias.

After Haftar's forces were routed from the country's west, the two camps in October signed a ceasefire in Geneva.

Dbeibah took office in March to lead the country to elections in December.