Turkish cargo ship attacked near Libya’s Tobruk port

Europe, News May 11, 2015 , by IRIA No Comments

Libya’s internationally recognized government in Tobruk has admitted to attacking a Turkish cargo ship. The incident claimed at least one life and left several others wounded

A Turkish freighter has been attacked near the coast of Libya, leaving one crew member dead, Turkey’s foreign ministry has said.

The Cook Islands-flagged cargo ship, owned by a Turkish company, was shelled from the Libyan coast as it travelled from Spain to Tobruk and then attacked from the air as it tried to flee the region on Monday, the Turkish foreign ministry said in a statement. Several crew members were hurt.

“The air force called on it several times to turn back, but it failed to comply,” the member of the recognized parliament in Tobruk told news agency AFP.

Turkey criticised what it called an “atrocious” act.

“We condemn strongly this contemptible attack which targeted a civilian ship in international waters and curse those who carried it out,” the ministry said, adding that the government had registered a protest with Libya’s officials. The ship was returning to Turkey, they said.

But Libya said it had issued warnings about not approaching parts of the coastline.

Libya has been in chaos since its long-time leader, Colonel Muammar Gaddafi, was overthrown with Western military help in 2011.

Internationally recognized Prime Minister Abdullah al-Thinni said in February his government would stop dealing with Turkey because it was sending weapons to a rival group in Tripoli so that “the Libyan people kill each other”.

Turkey denies taking sides in the conflict, saying it supports U.N.-led efforts to broker a peace.

A Libyan warplane from forces loyal to Thinni’s government bombed a Greek-operated oil tanker anchored off Libya’s coast in January, killing two crewmen, amid hostilities between factions vying for power.

Attacks on foreign ships in waters near Libya may complicate European Union efforts to stop traffickers sending thousands of migrants to Europe in often unseaworthy vessels.

Thousands have drowned in the voyage and several EU nations have sent naval vessels to the region to try to stem the migrant influx. But Libyan officials have warned against any measure perceived as an attack on the country’s sovereignty.