First commercial flight from Libya to Italy in almost 10 years takes off

TRIPOLI, Oct 1: A Rome-bound flight took off Saturday here in the Libyan capital, resuming direct scheduled flights between Libya and Italy after a nearly 10-year halt.

Operated by Libya-based Medsky Airways, the flight took off from Tripoli's Mitiga International Airport for Rome's Leonardo da Vinci-Fiumicino International Airport.

The airline offers a roundtrip flight on Saturdays and Wednesdays between Tripoli and Rome, Medsky Airways announced on its Facebook account.

Meanwhile, the Libyan Ministry of Transport said that the two countries' civil aviation authorities signed a memorandum of understanding on civil aviation cooperation and air transport.

The deal, signed in Tripoli, would also facilitate and encourage airline companies in the two countries to operate charter and regular flights, said the ministry in a statement.

In December 2014, the European Commission banned all Libyan airlines from operating in European airspace citing security reasons.