Prime Minister of Tobruk government has been banned by gunmen from travelling to Malta on Tuesday.

Abdullah Al-Thani was due to leave for Malta from Labrag Airport in Al-Bayda to attend an oil conference, slated for Wednesday, when pro Khalifa Haftar militias prevented him.

There were reports of exchange of fire between the guards and the militias. Al-Thani has been taken to a safe place following the skirmishes.

The reason was not clear, but some reports indicated that the militias wanted to arrest him in connection to Al-Thani's dismissal of his deputy for security affairs Al-Mihdi Allabad who enjoys good relations with Haftar's militias.

Al-Thani government is trying to bypass the country's only oil corporation and lure foreign contractors to deal with his government and divert revenues to his rival oil corporation in the eats as foreign buyers pay through the NOC and the central Bank in Tripoli.

The conference was expected to be held in Dubai in August but it was postponed due to lack of participants.

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