Three Libyan civilians killed in Haftar air raid in Tripoli suburbs

Three civilians were killed on Wednesday in an air raid on a town south of Libya's capital Tripoli, a spokesman for the UN-recognised government said.

"Three were killed and three wounded in an air raid on Al-Sawani," Amin al-Hachemi, spokesman for the Tripoli-based Government of National Accord (GNA), told AFP.

Al-Sawani lies around 25 kilometres (15 miles) south of the capital and under GNA control.

Tripoli's southern suburbs have been hit by deadly fighting since rogue General Khalifa Haftar launched an offensive against the capital in early April.

Several shops were badly damaged in the air raid, Hachemi said.

On their Facebook page, forces loyal to the GNA published pictures of badly damaged buildings and vehicles, and accused pro-Haftar forces of carrying out the raid.

GNA forces said in a statement that they had captured 25 pro-Haftar fighters on Wednesday.

Libya was plunged into chaos in 2014, when Haftar's self-styled "Libyan National Army" unilaterally launched "Operation Dignity" against rival militias, who had taken part in the overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi.

Libya is now divided between the GNA and a rival administration based in Tobruk in eastern Libya.

According to UN figures published last month, more than 280 civilians and 2,000 fighters have been killed since Haftar launched his Tripoli offensive while over 140,000 people have been forced to flee their homes.