The deputy minister of the Transportation Ministry of the Presidential Council's government Hisham Bushakiwat has announced that Zuwara airport has been closed and called on the UN envoy to Libya Ghassan Salame to fly using Mitiga Airport in Tripoli, "just like all Libyans."
The deputy minister told Libya Al-Ahrar TV Channel on Saturday that Salame should not be "political" when it comes to the lives of the Libyan civilians who travel via Mitiga Airport.
"There is no coordination with the UNSMIL officials for a visit to the airport, but we do invite Salame or his deputy Stephenie Williams to pay a visit." Bushakiwat said.
He indicated that insurance companies had started to reject covering the financial cost of the damage to the Libyan airports as attacks on them became frequent.
This decision is seen as the backlash of Salame's briefing at the Security Council, where he, according to government officials, gave untruths about the nature of Mitiga Airport, saying it is used for military purposes.
