Members of the Libyan National Army (LNA) fire a tank during fighting against militias in Qanfudah, on the southern outskirts of Benghazi, on January 14, 2017.

:: At least 141 people, mostly soldiers loyal to Libya’s Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, have been killed in an attack on a southern airbase, a spokesman for his forces said on Friday.

The victims of Thursday’s attack by rival forces include civilians who worked on the Brak al-Shati airbase or were in the nearby area, Ahmad al-Mesmari said, also reporting that summary executions took place.

UN envoy condemns attack

The UN envoy to Libya has condemned the suspected militia attack on the air base in the country’s south that reportedly killed soldiers and civilians and wounded dozens.

Martin Kobler expressed his outrage over the attack in a statement released on Friday.

He suggested that if the reports were true, the “unprovoked attack on the Buraq al-Shati air base” on Thursday could amount to war crimes and may be prosecuted by the International Criminal Court.

Libya’s army, loyal to an east-based parliament, promised a “strong” response to the attack, believed to have been carried out by militias from the country’s west.

Libya descended into chaos following the 2011 civil war that toppled and killed strongman Moammar Gaddafi. The oil-rich nation is now split between rival governments and militias.