Analysis-Libya's gunfights clash with government effort to rebuild

Bullets are seen on the ground after yesterday's clashes between armed factions in Tripoli, Libya, August 16, 2023. REUTERS/Hazem Ahmed

TRIPOLI (Reuters) - A brand new highway junction in a suburb of Tripoli was meant to showcase how the government was delivering improvements to the lives of ordinary Libyans but this week's deadly clashes left it ringed by burnt-out cars and littered with spent bullet cases.

The violence that killed 55 people around the intersection called "Return to Life" was Tripoli's worst in years and wrecked any illusion of an easing of Libya's decade of conflict and chaos that has often disrupted the OPEC state's oil output and made it a big departure point for migrants heading to Europe.