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The move is Italy's latest effort to counter the country's migration surge. According to the International Organization for Migration, 94,802 migrants have reached Italian shores so far this year, while 2,221 migrants have died attempting the treacherous Mediterranean crossing from Libya to Italy.

The Italian Parliament passed a bill on Wednesday that green-lighted Libya's original request for help, sent in a letter from the Prime Minister of Libya's UN-recognized Government of National Accord on July 27.

According to an Italian Navy spokesperson, the two ships -- a patrol vessel and a technical and logistical support unit -- could be deployed to Libyan waters as early as next week.

Libya is a popular jumping-off point for migrants hoping to reach European shores. Many of them are fleeing war and persecution while others are seeking better economic opportunities. The North African country is a well-established base for a human trafficking operation that sees smugglers operating with more ease because of the country's lack of effective central governance.

But some nongovernmental organizations are concerned the move will expose migrants to far more danger.

Amnesty International heavily criticized the initiative, saying that "deploying warships to police Libyan waters will expose refugees to horrific abuse," in a statement released on Wednesday.

Gauri Van Gulik, Amnesty International deputy Europe director, said: "Italy, along with other EU member states, should be focusing on increasing its search and rescue operations. Instead it has chosen to shirk its responsibilities and endanger the very people it says it is trying to help, including by providing military cover and support to the Libyan coast guard, whose reckless and abusive conduct against refugees and migrants during interceptions has been repeatedly documented."

It's the second move the Italian government has taken on migration in a week.

On Monday, Italy's Parliament passed a "code of conduct" for NGOs operating search and rescue missions in the Mediterranean.

The measure requests that NGO rescue boats take armed police onto their vessels in an effort to crack down on human smugglers.

Three of the eight humanitarian groups agreed to its terms. Doctors Without Borders refused to sign the code over concerns it could increase deaths at sea.

Read more here:
Italy to deploy naval ships to Libya as migration crisis grows - CNN

Paris - French bank Societe Generale on Wednesday said its net profit tumbled by over a quarter in the second quarter of this year due to the cost of settling a lawsuit with Libya's sovereign wealth fund.

While it had already set aside some funds, Societe Generale had to book a charge of nearly billion euros against second-quarter profits for the out-of-court settlement with the Libyan Investment Authority in May.

The LIA sued the bank in 2014 for $1.5bn for allegedly channelling bribes to allies of Moammar Gaddafi's son. The case had been about to go to court in Britain.

The charge pushed net profit down to $1.24bn, but that still beat the average forecast of $1.1bn of analysts surveyed by financial data firm Factset.

"In a mixed economic and financial environment, Societe Generale posted sound second-quarter results, confirming the good commercial and operating performances achieved by the businesses at the beginning of the year," chief executive Frederic Oudea said in a statement.

Stripped of exceptional items - including a capital gain of over 725 million in the second quarter last year from the sale of its stake in Visa Europe, the bank's profit rose by 11% to $1.37bn.

Operating expenses rose by 1.2% as Societe Generale stepped up investments into modernising its French retail bank operations and support growth in its international retail banking operations.

While the profitability of operations at home continued to suffer from the effects of the ultra-low interest rates in the eurozone, retail banking and financial services abroad enjoyed growth and net profit jumped 30% to $671m.

Oudea said the bank would present a new strategic development plan in November.

The bank's shares dropped more than three percent in early trading on the Paris stock exchange, while the CAC 40 index slid 0.2%.

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Libya settlement cuts into Societe Generale profit - News24

A group of rappers who say they had to flee Libya for their art were on their way to Italy Wednesday after being rescued by a charity boat.

The self-described musicians were among a group of 17 mostly Libyan men picked up by the Aquarius, a vessel operated by French NGO SOS Mediterranee and international humanitarian organisation Doctors without Borders (MSF), from a fishing boat in distress in waters off the Libyan coast.

Im (a) rapper, I do rap music, so I got to get out of Libya, one of the men, Youssef, told AFP.

I have to get out of Libya for freedom of speech, you know about that. Libya is a dangerous zone right now for arts...

Youssef, from the countrys second city Benghazi, said he had paid a trafficker he met in a coffee shop in the capital Tripoli to get on the boat.

So I was talking and someone after I finished talking got me to the side and said If you are looking for a trip I can get you one, but it will be expensive.

I asked him how much expensive and he said like 1,500 (dollars). I said I can pay 1,000, you know, stuff like this. So he got my number and he said I will see and come back to you. The next day he called me and said: All right someone will come and pick the money up.

MSF volunteer Seraina Eldada said the rescued men had been severely dehydrated and exhausted when the Aquarius reached their stricken boat.

They were very weak, some of them barely conscious, she said. But they are all getting stronger now and starting to recover, drinking water.

Right now we are just trying to figure out what their stories are.

The rescued men were to be taken to an Italian port although first the Aquarius was taking part in another rescue operation, this time for a fishing boat reported to have some 300 people on board.

More than 95,000 migrants have been rescued in the Mediterranean and taken to Italy since the start of the year, just over a third of them on privately-funded NGO boats.

The organisations say they are saving lives but their operations have been criticised for allegedly encouraging migrants to risk a journey that has claimed at least 2,385 lives so far in 2017.

Read more here:
Musicians flee Libya for 'right to rap' - Hindustan Times

Libyas crude shipments jumped to a new three-year high last month, dealing a fresh blow to OPEC and allied oil-producing nations as they battle to restrict a global supply surplus thats depressing prices for the commodity.

The North African nation shipped about 865,000 barrels a day of crude in July,tanker tracking data compiled by Bloomberg show. That was a gain of 11 percent from June, which was already the highest since at least July 2014.

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The pace at which Libya can revive crude sales is critical for the oil market because, along with Nigeria, the nation wasnt bound by Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries supply restrictions that helped limit supply this year. Domestic conflicts mean the two nations can pump at will while other producer states are depriving themselves of export revenues. Nigeria is also boosting output as a militant campaign is quelled.

Libyas revival hurts OPECs efforts to re-balance the oil market, said Carsten Fritsch, an analyst at Commerzbank AG. It comes at a time when other countries that agreed to curb production are starting to comply less strictly with the accord, he said.

The total output from OPEC members in July rose 210,000 barrels a day from June to reach 32.87 million barrels a day, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Libya led the gains. An expected crude-price recovery has failed to materialize since January, the start point for when OPEC, along with non-member nations including Russia, agreed to restrict collective output by about 1.8 million barrels a day.

It may be a challenge for Libya to maintain its current rate of exports, according toTorbjorn Kjus, chief oil analyst at DNB Bank ASA.

It would be a surprise if they could keep production stable," he said, adding that there are still too many groups and people battling for a share of the countrys oil sales.

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Libya Crude Floods Market Again as OPEC Fights to Restrict Flows - Bloomberg

BENGHAZI, LIBYA

The head of Libya's committee tasked with writing the constitution called upon the eastern parliament Tuesday to hold a national referendum on a final draft, setting in motion a long-awaited step that it's hoped will end the current political stalemate and terminate power struggles among the country's rival parties.

More than three years overdue, the draft still leaves many of Libya's key questions unanswered. Experts warn that its lack of clarity will pave the way for another phase of instability, which has plagued the country since the 2011 uprising that ousted longtime leader Moammar Gadhafi.

The call by Nouh Abdel-Sayyed to "take all necessary measures to enable the Libyan people to practice their constitutional right" came after days of confusion over whether his committee is following proper legal procedures.

On Saturday, disgruntled protesters stormed the committee's session in the eastern town of Bayda, calling for a redo of their vote, which was in favor of putting the final draft up for a nationwide referendum. Opponents included secessionists who wanted greater say over the redistribution of resources in the oil-rich country and those in favor of the country's 1951 constitution, which would mean a return to the monarchy.

The 60-member committee was elected in a direct vote in 2014; it was scheduled to deliver a draft in 120 days. However, unrelenting conflicts forced delays.

Legal expert Sami al-Atrash said articles of the constitution look innocent enough on the surface, but "it's not a homogenous document and this is not an honest attempt to produce an inclusive constitution."

A look at the draft shows efforts to keep most of the articles as vague as possible to avoid conflicts among the country's rival parties. The draft made no mention of the national anthem or the flag, to avoid friction between those who backed the 2011 uprising against Gadhafi and those who continue to support him.

'Legislative trap'

"It was done in a way to just escape from the current situation and crisis," said al-Atrash, who warned this would, "postpone, rather than face, harsh realities."

He added that leaving the articles open to interpretation "could lead to a legislative trap."

The draft failed to live up to the aspirations of many easterners, who long complained of discrimination under Gadhafi. Eastern secessionists call for the return of autonomy to Cyrenaica, saying their lands are the major source of oil. However, for decades, Libya's centralized system has driven oil gains to the capital.

In Article 143, the draft states decentralization is the basis of governance. However, Article 148 defers the issues of local municipalities and their budgeting to future legislation. The draft also removed an earlier mention of the eastern city of Benghazi as the economic capital and seat of the central bank.

As for presidential elections, the draft places several restrictions on candidates; candidates with dual citizenship must revoke their non-Libyan nationality a year before registration for elections begins, and if married it must be to a Libyan national. The article risks isolating some of the most powerful Libyan politicians who under Gadhafi lived in exile and were granted non-Libyan nationalities or married non-Libyans.

The draft also deprived non-Arab minorities like the Amazigh who make up between 5 and 10 percent of Libya's population of having their language recognized alongside Arabic as a state language.

The push for the vote came less than a week after Libya's top rivals the internationally recognized, designated prime minister, Fayez Serraj, and army chief Marshal Khalifa Hifter met in Paris, where they shook hands on a cease-fire and agreed to work toward parliamentary and presidential elections as soon as possible.

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Libya Constitutional Committee Pushes for Vote on Draft - Voice of America