The 2011 Libyan conflict that ended in the gruesome death of dictator Muammar Gaddafi has all but vanished from news headlines, but the aftershocks and continued violence is once again very much on the agenda.

Although the brutal strongman Muammar Gaddafi has now been relegated to those particular annals of history reserved for only the most infamous, the chaos left in his wake never, truth be told, really subsided as rival factions continue, now nearly three years since his death in October 2011, to battle for control of the country.

Libya is now in the midst of the worst violence since the revolution against Gaddafi’s iron fisted rule. In Tripoli, the militias are fighting mostly for control of the airport. The US yesterday became the latest in a number of countries to have closed diplomatic operations in Libya. On Friday, Turkey announced that it had shut its embassy and militia clashes in Benghazi have prompted the United Nations, aid groups and foreign envoys to leave.

In Tripoli, clashes near the international airport have forced nearby residents to evacuate their homes after they were hit by shells. On Friday, the official Libyan news agency reported that explosions were heard early in the day near the airport area and that they continued into the afternoon.

The battle in Tripoli began earlier this month when Islamist-led militias – mostly from the western city of Misrata – launched a surprise assault on the airport, under control of rival militias from the western mountain town of Zintan.

The rival militias, made up largely of former anti-Gaddafi rebels, have forced a weeklong closure of petrol stations and government offices. In recent days, armed men have attacked vehicles carrying money from the Central Bank to local banks, forcing their closure.

Libyan government officials and activists have increasingly been targeted in the violence. Gunmen kidnapped two members of Libya’s parliament in the western suburbs of Tripoli a week ago and on Friday armed men abducted Abdel-Moaz Banoun, a well-known Libyan political activist in Tripoli.

In the meantime, the Special Envoys for Libya of the Arab League, the European Union, France, Germany, Italy, Malta, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States have declared that the situation in Libya has now reached a critical stage and expressed ‘deep concern’ over developments in Libya.

Matters in Libya, however, show no signs of getting any better and signs of mediation between the warring militias are nowhere in sight.

In the midst of all this chaos is Malta, Europe’s closest country to Libya, a place from where, back in 2011, over 24,000 foreign workers in Libya were evacuated to, and from where vital supplies were sent to Libya.

And Malta may, in actual fact, be called to action once again as it was in 2011 when it re-earned its fabled reputation as the Nurse of the Mediterranean. In the coming days or weeks it could very well be called upon to repeat the effort.

Malta, once again, must tread carefully with Libya – more so now that a Maltese national has been taken hostage by one of the militias battling for control. In this respect, the veil of silence that the government has cast over the Maltese hostage situation is perfectly understandable and completely correct.  The foreign minister in fact said yesterday that the government would release no statements about the man abducted until he is safe and sound – much better and rational than attempting to grandstand the situation.

But there is also the feeling that the government is attempting to tone down the situation unfolding very quickly to our south. Last week the government tried to state that all was fine and dandy with the Maltese in Libya and that no one needed ‘evacuation’. 

Reports reaching this newsroom, however, told quite a different story and it was only after we published their comments last Sunday that the government, the next day, began organising flights for Maltese desperate to leave the militia-torn quasi if not fully failed state. To be fair, the government had also been informed on Sunday that a Maltese national had been abducted, which undoubtedly helped spur the government into action – and none too soon given the rate at which the situation in Libya appears to be deteriorating.

Yes, Malta must tread very carefully in this situation but that does not mean it should be diluting or omitting the basic information that it has from on the ground in Libya.

Yes, this is a delicate situation, especially now that a Maltese life hangs in the balance. The government has established an inter-ministerial crisis coordination centre. While we do not know the exact composition of the centre, it would be a fine idea to set political differences aside in the national interest and in the process bring back some of the key Maltese players from the 2011 crisis to lend a helping hand. They have, after all, been there before and had performed their duties excellently. Their experience should not be wasted.