TRIPOLI, Aug 4, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Overnight clashes between rival armed groups in western Libya left four dead and at least 10 wounded, a security source told AFP on Tuesday.

The fighting was between members of the Anti-Security Threat Agency and the 103rd Battalion, the official said.

The Anti-Security Threat Agency is linked to Prime Minister Abdelhamid Dbeibah, who heads the UN-recognised government in Tripoli, while the 103rd falls under his ministry of defence.

"The fighting that broke out late Monday evening and is continuing south of Sorman (60 kilometres west of Tripoli), and in some neighbourhoods of the nearby city of Zawiya, has left four dead and more than 10 wounded," the official from Zawiya's security directorate said on condition of anonymity.

Neither the prime minister's office nor the defence ministry has commented.

Clashes between armed groups are a recurring issue in the regions of Sorman and Zawiya, where there is a large oil refinery.

The coastal area is at the heart of power struggles between armed groups engaged in organised crime such as diesel smuggling, human trafficking and other activities.

Heavy and medium weapons fire could still be heard in the area on Tuesday morning, according to the official, who announced the deployment of a "neutral force" on the ground to defuse the conflict and prevent an even deadlier escalation.

As a precaution the main route between the capital and the Zawiya region was closed overnight.

Images and videos circulating on social media, whose authenticity AFP has not been able to verify, show thick columns of black smoke rising above residential neighborhoods in Sorman, as well as torched military vehicles and equipment.

Libya has the most abundant oil reserves in Africa, but has been divided ever since it was plunged into war during the ouster in 2011 of former leader Muammar Gaddafi.

Two governments are currently vying for power: the UN-recognised administration in Tripoli and a rival in the east backed by military commander Khalifa Haftar.