Tripoli's Leaders Call For Anti-Militia Protests

Libyan Prime Minister Ali Zeidan's armed forces are struggling to control militias, radical militants and other former fighters who refuse to disarm after helping to oust Muammar Gaddafi in a NATO-backed uprising two years ago.

Violence broke out on Friday when militiamen from the coastal city of Misrata opened fire on protesters marching on their brigade quarters in Tripoli to demand they leave the capital, Reuters reported.

Dozens of people were killed in the clashes that followed - the deadliest street fighting in Tripoli since Gaddafi's fall. Misrata gunmen and rival militias clashed again on Saturday to the east of the capital, killing one more.

Saadat al-Badry, the head of Tripoli's local council, told Reuters, that city leaders wanted all armed groups from outside Tripoli to leave the capital and demanded an investigation into Friday's violence.

"We have declared a strike for three days from today, but if our demands are not met we will continue," he said. "We will not negotiate with them. Things are as clear as the sun, we want a decision."

Backing up those demands against powerful and well-armed militias will be difficult for Zeidan's government, whose nascent armed forces are still training with help from the United States and its NATO partners.

Zeidan himself was abducted by a government-payrolled militia group last month but freed unharmed after a few hours.

Many stores, schools and universities were closed in the capital on Sunday - normally a working day in Libya - and some in neighborhoods. Residents set up barricades of metal, wood and tires to protect their streets and join the protest.

Militiamen and former fighters are often employed by the government to protect ministries and government offices. But gunmen remain loyal to their commanders or tribes and often clash in rivalries over control of territories.