Security situation now critical – UN

The UN Security Council has called for a ceasefire in Libya as the death toll from a three-month offensive on Tripoli rises above 1 000. The council has condemned last week’s attack on the Tajoura detention camp east of Tripoli and ‘stressed the need for all parties to urgently de-escalate the situation and to commit to a ceasefire’. A report on the News24 site notes that the International Organisation for Migration said six children were among the migrants killed. The UN has called for an independent investigation to determine who was responsible for the strike on the centre, which housed some 600 migrants, mainly from African countries. Libyan commander Khalifa Haftar, whose forces hold eastern Libya and much of the country's south, launched an offensive in early April to wrestle the capital from forces loyal to the UN-recognised Government of National Accord. World powers have been divided over how to respond to Haftar's offensive, with the US and Russia refusing to condemn the Libyan strongman.