The decision was taken as forces loyal to eastern-based military commander Khalifa Haftar, which control the area, sought to repel an attack on the port by Benghazi Defense Brigades forces from the west, he said. But production remains vulnerable to political turmoil and continued insecurity, with factions based in the east and west of Libya repeatedly clashing in recent weeks in desert areas southwest of the Oil Crescent whose ports suffered major damage in previous rounds of fighting and are still operating well below capacity. Libya's oil production has recently been fluctuating around 700,000 barrels per day (bpd), more than double its output last year but still well under the 1.6 million bpd the OPEC member was producing before a 2011 uprising. The Benghazi Defence Brigades are composed partly of fighters who were ousted from Benghazi by the LNA, where LNA commander Khalifa Haftar has been waging a military campaign for nearly three years against Islamists and other opponents.
The Benghazi Defense Brigades, an ally of the Shura Council of Benghazi Revolutionaries, claims to have captured five cities and two oil-production areas from forces loyal to Khalifa Haftar in the east of Libya.