Libya air strike hits Tripoli's last functioning airport

The head of the Libyan air force, Gen Saqr al-Jarrushi, told the AFP news agency and local media that his forces were behind the air strikes.

Gen al-Jarrushi is loyal to ex-general Khalifa Haftar, whose forces, supported by the Libyan army and air force, have been fighting Islamist militants in eastern Libya.

Meanwhile, the prime minister of Libya's self-declared national government in Tripoli, Omar al-Hassi, says that his government had been open to dialogue with their counterparts but would now be pursuing a policy of war.

"We are now facing an enemy that has a lot of weapons and has support from regional powers and unfortunately elsewhere in the world who are providing them with weapons and experts," Mr al-Hassi said in response to the strikes.

A commander of the Libya Dawn militia coalition, Salah al-Berki, called on "the revolutionaries in Tripoli to maintain all their positions in their bases".