An international airport at Libya's second city Benghazi has restarted commercial flights after being closed for three years due to fighting.
Benghazi's international airport has officially reopened for commercial flights amid a heavy security presence after a three-year closure due to fighting in the city.
According to Reuters, the first outward bound flights from Benina Airport on Saturday were to the capital, Tripoli, to Amman, Jordan, and to the south-eastern Libyan city of Kufra.
Other flights are also scheduled to and from Tunis, Istanbul, Alexandria, and the western Libyan city of Zintan.
The flights are operated by two state-owned companies, Libyan Airlines and Afriqiyah Airways.
Benina is just east of Benghazi, Libya's second city, where fighting escalated in the summer of 2014 when forces loyal to eastern-based commander Khalifa Haftar launched a military campaign against Islamist militias and other opponents.
Travelers and airport staff expressed relief at no longer having to travel to Labraq airport, a four-hour drive east of Benghazi, which had replaced Benina as the main airport for the eastern part of the country.
