The Second Annual Forum of the Libyan Industry Union (LIU) 2026, under the banner ‘‘We Meet to Debate’’, will be held on 27 January in Tajura Industrial Research Centre, Tripoli. The forum will bring together a select group of industrial business leaders, factory and company managers, representatives of banks and insurance companies, and government agencies related to the industrial sector to discuss:– Prospects for industrial financing and the role of insurance in guaranteeing financing. – The most prominent practical challenges facing Libyan factories. – Launch of several new programs and initiatives for 2026. The forum represents a key milestone in strengthening B2B partnerships and opening new channels of cooperation between the industrial sector and the finance and insurance sectors.

The activities of the Peacebuilders Empowerment Project, targeting women and girls with disabilities, have officially launched. The project is organized by Nabd Libya for Childhood and Youth, with support from the Canadian Embassy, and is being held at the Sheraton Hotel. This initiative aims to enhance the active participation of women and girls with disabilities in peacebuilding and public life, and to reinforce their role as key partners in pathways of social change. The project comes as a continuation of the Leadership Preparation Program for Women with Disabilities previously implemented by Nabd Libya for Childhood and Youth. The project includes five specialized training sessions focusing on developing skills in dialogue, peacebuilding, negotiation, and teamwork, contributing to strengthening the presence of women with disabilities within spheres of influence and decision-making.

Benghazi – The committee formed by House of Representatives Resolution No. Masoud Suleiman Musa, Chairman of the National Oil Corporation (NOC), attended. The committee further discussed ensuring the regular flow of oil revenues. Oil revenues are the primary source of the national economy. The committee will submit practical recommendations to the House of Representatives.

Tripoli – The Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation in the Government of National Unity, Al-Taher Al-Baour, met with Nguyen Nam Dung, the new accredited Ambassador of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam to Libya. Al-Baour congratulated the Vietnamese ambassador on his new appointment. He highlighted Libya’s commitment to strengthening bilateral cooperation. Ambassador Nguyen Nam Dung expressed his gratitude. They also agreed to work on strengthening bilateral relations across all sectors.

The House of Representatives (HoR) has launched an investigation into the country’s ongoing liquidity crisis, appointing a committee to engage with the Central Bank governor and its board. The committee will examine the causes of cash shortages, exchange rate pressures and delays in public sector salaries, and propose solutions. Lawmakers voted last week to form the panel following growing public concern over access to cash and rising economic pressures

Tripoli – The Department for AIDS and Sexually Transmitted Diseases Control organized its first training program. It was titled “Education and Prevention: Enhancing the Capabilities of Health Paramedics, Social Workers, and Psychologists in Facing HIV.” The program’s slogan was “Knowledge Today – Health Tomorrow.”The training was a collaboration with the Social Service and School Health Office of the Ministry of Education. These included health paramedics, social workers, and psychologists. These included the Director of the Social Service and School Health Office. Heads of departments included Social Service, School Health, and Communicable Diseases from the Health Services Department.

Libya signed on Sunday a strategic partnership with international firms to expand and develop the Misurata Free ‍Zone, attracting an ‍estimated $2.7 billion in investment, Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah said. "This project not only enhances ⁠Libya's position among the region's largest ports in terms of size and capacity, but it also relies ⁠on direct ‌foreign investment within a comprehensive international partnership," Dbeibah said on X. The Misurata Free Zone signed the agreement with Port operator Terminal Investment Limited, which ⁠is expected to help MFZ's port become a competitive logistics hub between Africa, Europe and the Middle East. The port extends over a vast area of ​​190 hectares, according to the free zone's website. The signing ceremony was held at the MFZ facility and attended by Dbeibah, Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani and Antonio Tajani, the deputy prime minister and foreign affairs minister of Italy.

Libyan authorities announced on Sunday a strategic partnership deal worth $3 billion with a Qatari fund and Swiss-Italian shipping giant MSC’s subsidiary to develop Misrata port. The project involves an investment of $2.7 billion in the expansion of the Misrata port terminal to increase its handling capacity to 4 million containers per year, according to the office of Libya’s Tripoli-based Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah. Misrata, the country’s main non-oil terminal, handles 60-65 percent of the country’s container traffic. The project brings together the Misrata Free Zone Authority (MFZ), the Qatari fund Maha Capital Partners and the port operator Terminal Investment Limited (TIL), part of the shipping giant MSC. Libya remains divided between Dbeibah’s UN-backed government based in Tripoli and a rival administration based in the east and backed by strongman Khalifa Haftar.

Six people have been killed in a horrific traffic collision on a road in the Green Mountain, according to local and medical sources. Sources indicated on Saturday that the accident resulted in the deaths of members of two families from the city of Derna. A group of injured individuals were initially taken to Al Qubba Hospital and then transferred to a hospital in Derna, where some were reported to be in critical condition. Authorities are still investigating the circumstances and causes of the accident, amid local calls for increased road safety measures.

BENGHAZI — Libya’s security authorities have freed more than 200 migrants from what they described as a secret prison in the town of Kufra in the southeast of the country after they were held captive in inhuman conditions, two security sources from the city told Reuters on Sunday. The security sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that the security authorities had found an underground prison, nearly three meters deep, which the sources said was run by a Libyan human trafficker. AFP via Getty Images“Some of the freed migrants were held captive up to two years in the underground cells,” this source said. The freed migrants are from sub-Saharan Africa, mainly from Somalia and Eritrea, including women and children, the sources said. The oil-based Libyan economy is also a draw for impoverished migrants seeking work, but security throughout the sprawling country is poor, leaving migrants vulnerable to abuses.

TRIPOLI, Jan. 18 (Xinhua) -- Libya's central bank devalued the dinar by 14.7 percent against the International Monetary Fund's (IMF's) Special Drawing Rights (SDR) on Sunday, citing falling oil revenues and growing economic pressures. The bank said the decision was made during its first board meeting of 2026 on Wednesday, following recommendations from the Monetary Policy Committee. After the devaluation, the exchange rate stands at 0.1150 SDR per dinar, down from 0.1348. Dbeibah said the expansion would help make Libya a regional logistics hub while modernizing infrastructure and generating long-term revenue from state assets. Misurata, on Libya's northwestern Mediterranean coast, is one of the country's main commercial centers and a key gateway for trade with Africa, officials said.

Egyptian Foreign Minister, Badr Abdel-Aty has discussed the latest developments in Libya with his Greek counterpart, Giorgos Gerapetritis, reiterating Egypt's firm stance calling for the preservation of Libya's unity and stability and rejecting any foreign interference. The Egyptian minister stressed to his Greek counterpart the importance of reaching a comprehensive Libyan-led solution that fulfills the aspirations of the Libyan people and preserves their sovereignty. He emphasized the need to continue efforts to advance the political process in Libya, leading to simultaneous presidential and parliamentary elections as soon as possible, and the withdrawal of all foreign forces and mercenaries from Libya.

The General Administration of Coastal Security announced on Sunday the rescue of 99 illegal migrants of various nationalities after receiving a distress call from a boat off the coast of Zliten. In a statement, it said that upon receiving the distress call, instructions were issued for the patrol boat "P54," of Al-Khums branch, and the patrol boat "1204," of the Misrata branch, to proceed to the available coordinates. The boat was towed to the port of Al-Khums, and the 99 migrants of various nationalities were rescued and handed over to the Illegal Immigration Agency in eastern Tripoli, which has jurisdiction over such matters.

BENGHAZI, Jan 18 (Reuters) - Libya's security authorities ‌have freed more than 200 migrants from what they described as a secret prison ‌in the town of Kufra in the southeast of the country after they were ‌held captive in inhuman conditions, two security sources from the city told Reuters on Sunday. The security sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that the security authorities had found an underground prison, nearly three meters deep, which the sources ‍said was run by a Libyan human trafficker. "Some of the freed migrants were held captive up to two years in the underground ‍cells," ​this source said. "The operation resulted ⁠in a raid on a secret prison within the city, where ‌several inhumane underground detention cells were uncovered," one of the sources added. The oil-based Libyan economy is also a draw for impoverished migrants seeking work, but security throughout the sprawling country is poor, leaving migrants vulnerable to abuses.

The landmark partnership establishes a robust framework for modernizing Libya's health and energy sectors through the deployment of Italian expertise, ambitious capacity building initiatives, and sustainable cooperation mechanisms designed to create lasting institutional transformation. Comprehensive Multi-Sector Development InitiativeThe comprehensive agreements address two fundamental pillars of national infrastructure: advanced healthcare delivery systems and modernized energy sector development. The energy sector component focuses on infrastructure rehabilitation, renewable energy integration, and capacity building to support Libya's long-term energy independence and sustainability goals. "We, San Donato Group and GKSD, signed practical agreements with Libya Reconstruction and Development Fund, aimed at supporting and boosting the health and energy sectors, focusing on employing Italian expertise, building capacity, and achieving effective and sustainable cooperation." Implementation activities will commence in February 2026, with the first technical teams expected to arrive in Libya by early March.