Conflict-torn Libya confirms first coronavirus case

Libya has imposed a state of emergency to control the virus

Libya's Centre for Disease Control has announced the North African country’s first confirmed case of coronavirus.

This comes after both the internationally recognised government in Tripoli and the rival administration in the east of the country imposed strict travel measures, shutting their air space and land borders last week.

Libya has been torn by conflict since Nato-backed forces overthrew long-serving ruler Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.

There have been reports of continued shelling in and around the capital, despite both sides of the conflict nominally backing an international call for a humanitarian ceasefire on the weekend to allow health officials to prepare against the virus

There are concerns that the healthcare system in Libya is under-prepared for the global pandemic, as the violence in the ongoing conflict continues.

Neighbouring Tunisia, which Libyans often travel to for medical treatment, shut its airspace and land borders last week to control the spread of coronavirus.

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Coronavirus

Libya

North Africa