The United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) has expressed deep condemnation over what they described as “reports of brutal and outrageous summary executions in Benghazi on Wednesday.” The UNSMIL renewed their demand for Mahmoud Warfalli to be handed over immediately to the International Criminal Court (ICC) as it documented at least 5 similar cases, in 2017 alone, carried out or ordered by Warfalli. UNSMIL added on its Twitter account that those responsible for committing or ordering summary executions are criminally liable under international law. It is worth noting that during the visit of the UN envoy to Libya, Ghassan Salame, in Benghazi, Mahmoud Warfalli executed ten captives in front of the Bait Radwan mosque in what he described as revenge for the victims of the double car bombings on Tuesday.

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The Chairman of the Presidential Council (PC), Fayez Sarraj, met on Wednesday morning with the Minister of Finance, Osama Hammad and a number of officials in the ministry at the headquarters of the PC in the capital Tripoli. According to the Information Office of the PC, those present at the meeting discussed the proposed financial arrangements for the fiscal year 2018, as well as means of developing the oil and electricity sectors, establishing a reparation fund and a fund for the reconstruction of war-torn areas according to the political agreement.

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The Minister for Local Government, Badad Qansu, held a meeting on Wednesday in Tamina district, east of Misrata, in the presence of a number of members of the committee tasked to execute the agreement between Tawergha and Misrata. Those who were also present at the meeting were the new Mayor of Misrata and the Chairman of the Misrata Cleaning Company. After the meeting, the minister made an inspection tour to determine the progress of work so that the return of Tawerghans can be executed promptly and safely to their town. During the past few days, the committee tasked to execute the agreement between Tawergha and Misrata held several meetings to follow up financial procedures for reparation and any consequent executive procedures that need to take place. The current status of infrastructure and service was also on the agenda in preparation for the development of a plan for the return of the Tawerghan IDPs on the 1st of February.

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The Libyan Red Crescent in Benghazi announced that its volunteers uncovered 73 civilian and military bodies from different parts of the city, which witnessed armed clashes between the fighters of the Benghazi Shura Council and the armed groups of Khalifa Haftar in 2017. The Libyan Red Crescent stated on their official page on Facebook that volunteers helped bury 189 unidentified bodies that were stored in the morgue refrigerators in the Benghazi Medical Center after DNA samples were taken from the bodies to possibly identify the bodies in the future.

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The Security Unit of Derna Shura Council (DSC) arrested a terror cell loyal to Dignity Operation of Khalifa Haftar. The cell was seeking out ways to carry out assassinations and bombings in the city of Derna, the spokesman of the DSC, Mohammed Mansouri, stated in a post on Facebook. He said that the cell follows direct orders from Khalifa Haftar`s head of office, Awn Farjani, and Hafed Majdoub. Mansouri added that the cell members used an ISIS style profile to attempt to disguise their real identity, noting that a number of explosives were seized with them.

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The Tunisian Foreign Ministry announced on Wednesday that the five Tunisian sailors who were detained on January 19 by the Libyan Coast Guard in the Libyan territorial waters have been released. The Foreign Ministry said in a communiqué that the release of the Tunisian boat came after extensive communication conducted by the ministry with the Libyan authorities over the past week, in coordination with relevant Tunisian authorities.

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The Libyan national football team will face Congo Brazzaville in the quarter-finals of the Total African Nations Championship in Morocco. The Congolese team is the first to qualify in Group D after a goalless draw with Angola. It is expected that the game will be played at the Adrar stadium in the Moroccan city of Agadir next Sunday. The Libyan team qualified for the quarter-finals after beating Rwanda 1-0, which put them as runners-up of Group C.

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The Libyan Fatwa House called in a statement Thursday on officials to be aware of the ongoing exportation of migration problems to Libya by the West by setting up camps for illegal immigrants inside the country. The Fatwa House added that such an act adds to the destabilization in Libya, urging for the return of the immigrants to their countries. The Fatwa House also offered condolences of the victims of Benghazi twin car bombings and the families of the prisoners who were viciously executed Wednesday.

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Libyan dinar experienced a new hike in the black market on Thursday to close 20% higher than Wednesday with LYD4.95 per $1, compared to 5.95 last night. The euro also dropped sharply to reach LYD5.95 for 1 euro compared to LYD7 last night. The Libyan dinar has been extremely devalued since 2016 as it dropped to more than 50% against US dollar and other major currencies in the black market, reaching over 9 dinars per one dollar in the last 2017 quarter, compared to 3.6 dinars in the first 2016 quarter.

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