Angry supporters of a Tripoli-based football club, fueled by a controversial refereeing decision, set fire to the facade and gardens of Libya’s Government of National Unity (GNU) headquarters on Thursday. According to local media and eyewitness accounts, the demonstration quickly turned violent as the crowd targeted the administrative heart of the capital to voice their frustration.
What Referee Decision Sparked Violent Riot During Al-Ittihad vs Swehly Match?
The unrest erupted late Thursday evening following a match between Tripoli’s Al-Ittihad and Misrata’s Al-Swehly. Fans of Al-Ittihad took to the streets in protest after a referee denied their team a critical penalty kick, a decision that acted as a catalyst for the chaotic scenes that unfolded across Tripoli.
🚨 Protesters in #Tripoli, driven by a fallout at a football league game earlier, have stormed Government of National Unity’s headquarters and set fire to parts of it.#Libya pic.twitter.com/77dw5M7RIM
— Abdulkader Assad (@Abd0Assad) May 14, 2026
The match was played in Tarhouna’s city stadium, around 65 km (40 miles) southeast of Tripoli. A Reuters journalist who watched the match said it was stopped in the 87th minute after Al-ittihad protested the decision.
Al-ittihad fans at the match stormed the pitch, sparking a riot that damaged property and injured stadium guards, the journalist said.
Pictures on social media showed guards with wounds on their heads, legs and hands being rushed to a hospital in Tarhouna.
🇱🇾 Soccer fans and security forces clashed in Tripoli, and now the Libyan Football Federation HQ is on fire.
In a country where protests can spiral fast, even a football federation becomes collateral damage.pic.twitter.com/SN1lAzb40k https://t.co/vdYrbwhKPh
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) May 15, 2026
Libya Goverment Head Quarter On Fire
In Tripoli, according to two eyewitnesses, Al-ittihad fans who had been watching the match at their club’s complex marched towards the GNU building and set off fireworks “to express their anger”, causing the building’s facade to catch fire.
“The situation was very chaotic, with thick smoke rising into the sky, and cars in the area were trying to leave before things got worse because the fans were very angry,” one of the eyewitnesses said.
Video footage posted on the internet and from Istanbul-based Libya Al-Ahrar TV channel showed flames engulfing the glass facade of the GNU building and thick plumes of black smoke billowing into the sky.
#BREAKING #LIBYA #Tripoli
Were they really football fans?🔴 LIBYA : Protesters in Tripoli Storm Government of National Unity Headquarters After Fallout from Football League Game… pic.twitter.com/rmTzcepfue
— LW World News (@LW_WorldNews) May 14, 2026
There was no immediate response by the GNU to a Reuters request for a comment. The situation calmed down around midnight as GNU forces deployed around the building and firefighters brought the fire under control.
Al-ittihad in a statement on its verified Facebook page demanded “a comprehensive review of all refereeing decisions during the match”. Swehly said in a short statement on Facebook that its team was heading back to Misrata “crowned with victory”.
The internationally recognised GNU is headed by Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah, who came to power in 2021 in a U.N.-brokered process.
Libya has had little stability since a NATO-backed uprising in 2011 ousted longtime autocrat Muammar Gaddafi.
(With inputs from Reuters)
