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The masked gunmen attacked the headquarters of the Libyan National Petroleum Company in Tripoli, causing explosions and exchanges of fire with security guards and UN-backed Libyan government forces.
The company's president, Mustafa Sanallah, told Libyan television that there had been an unspecified number of dead and wounded. Reports suggest that six attackers were killed after a three-hour siege.
Sanallah, one of the country's most influential non-political figures, is accused of trying to eliminate corruption and increase Libyan oil production, which is likely to be the driving force behind any economic recovery.
The attack was allegedly committed by the Islamic State and not by one of the militias in conflict in Tripoli. The UN brokered a ceasefire between the militias three days ago after clashes killed more than 60 people. It may be that Isis has seized the recent anarchy in the capital to organize Monday's attack.
Security forces were seen cracking windows to help staff escape as smoke emanated from the NOC building. A series of explosions were heard, suggesting that bombs were exploding inside. "The building was heavily damaged by the fire. Smoke is everywhere, "Sanallah said. "The gunmen attacked the lower floors with random fire and explosions. It's a very violent attack.
Isis attacked the high national election commission in May, but no group had yet claimed the NOC attack. The incident will reinforce the warnings given last week to the UN by the special ambassador, Ghassan Salamé, according to which Isis is organizing a return to Libya. He suggested that the country could become "a haven for terrorist groups of all stripes".
The aggression will not help foreign investors to trust the Libyan oil industry and show how difficult it can be to hold meaningful elections in December in this deeply divided country. France and Italy disagree on the wisdom of conducting polls.
Last week, the NOC announced record revenues in 2018, with July-July figures showing revenues of $ 13.6 billion (10.5 billion pounds). According to his forecasts, oil revenues could reach $ 23.4 billion without further disruption, which would represent an increase of 80% over the previous year and give a boost to the highly indebted government. The NOC reached a record production level of 1.3 billion barrels a day in February.
After announcing the figures, Sanallah once again called for an end to corruption and a fair distribution of oil revenues across the country, where two rival governments and armed groups are fighting for control.
"I have repeatedly asked for the equitable distribution of national oil revenues and have called for transparency across the government in this regard," Sanallah said. "It is one of the most important problems facing our country. NOC will ensure that it is the benchmark in governance against which other Libyan institutions will measure their performance.
The country's oil sector has been repeatedly disrupted by violence since a NATO-backed rebellion in 2011 overthrew Muammar Gaddafi. Petrochemical exports accounted for the vast majority of government revenue, with production of 1.6 million barrels per day. Since the fall of Gaddafi, production has fallen to about 20% of this level, before rising to more than 1 million barrels per day at the end of 2017. Opec, the cartel of oil producers, estimates the oil reserves of Libya at 48 billion barrels, the largest in Africa.
