Three killed as tribal violence flares in south Libya

Fighting between tribes in southern Libya on Tuesday killed three people and wounded 20, according to local medics, in the latest flare-up in over a month of clashes.

The violence has rocked the town of Sebha, some 600 kilometres (370 miles) south of Tripoli, where tribal rivalries have frequently spilt over into bloodshed.

The Sebha Medical Centre wrote on social media that three civilians, including a young girl, were killed after a two-day lull in fighting.

The latest clashes in the marginalised Fezzan region - known for its smuggling routes - have see the Arab Awlad Suleiman tribe pitted against the Tubus.

The UN said Thursday that it was "deeply concerned" by the escalation in fighting that had left at least six civilians dead and seen a hospital "hit repeatedly".

Since the 2011 revolution that ousted longtime dictator Muammar Gaddafi, Fezzan has been embroiled in conflict involving the ethnic Tubus and Tuaregs, as well as two Arab tribes, the Zuwaya and the Awlad Suleiman.

Accross the country, rival administrations and multiple militias are vying for control of the oil-rich state.

A UN-backed unity government based in the capital Tripoli has struggled to assert its authority outside the west, and military strongman Khalifa Haftar controls much of the east.

The government chief Fayez al-Sarraj on Tuesday announced "support measures" for forces to "protect and secure the south from all dangers" after a meeting with commanders from the region.

The health ministry urged the "warring parties to spare medical facilities in the city" and officials said they were dispatching 10 vehicles equipped with medical equipment to establish an airlift point.

Rival Haftar's militia on Sunday announced it had deployed forces to an air base in the south of the country.