Over 100,000 people displaced by violence in Libya: UN

The United Nations Support Mission for Libya (UNSMIL) has reported that violence in parts of Libya has led to a deteriorating displacement crisis, prompting more than 100,000 people to flee their homes, a UN spokesperson said Tuesday.

"According to the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR), at least 100,400 people have fled their homes in the past month alone due to intense fighting in the eastern towns of Benghazi and Derna as well as in Libya's southeast and west regions," Xinhua quoted Stephane Dujarric as saying at a daily press briefing.

Since May, nearly 400,000 people have been displaced in Libya, he noted.

"Many displaced people, scattered around 35 towns or cities, are urgently in need of food, water, shelter, health care and other basic commodities," he said. "Aid organisations are assessing the scale of displacement and humanitarian needs."

Libya has been suffering from growing instability as heavy clashes further polarise the North African country. Since the ouster of long-ruling strongman Moammar Qadhafi in 2011, the Libyan government has long been at the mercy of rogue brigades as the central government has not had enough power to regain control over its territory.