Founded in 1955, the institution in eastern Libya was heavily damaged during battles between jihadist groups and forces led by military commander Khalifa Haftar between 2014 and 2016, after the uprising that toppled longtime ruler Muammar Gaddafi.

University president Ezzedin Younis Eddressi said in an interview that around 90 percent of the campus complex had been destroyed during the conflict and that explosives had been planted across the grounds when jihadist groups controlled the city. He also said rare manuscripts dating back centuries were looted but later recovered.

Despite the destruction, classes continued during the worst years of the fighting using alternative facilities across Benghazi, with schools shared between schoolchildren in the morning and university students in the afternoon, according to the administration.

Nearly 70,000 students now attend the university, still using temporary facilities while a new campus—covering about 600 hectares—is expected to open in the coming months. The reconstruction has been overseen by Libya’s Reconstruction Fund, which is headed by Belgacem Haftar, son of Khalifa Haftar.

Students and graduates interviewed by AFP described gradual improvements in security and infrastructure. Maryam Alrefadi, a graduate who now teaches French online, said the city had regained stability and opportunities compared to the conflict years, while current students said conditions had improved significantly despite lingering economic challenges.

Ayesha Al-Mogassbi, a 19-year-old student, said earlier years were marked by shortages and instability but added that students now aim for broader opportunities and development. Others noted that students from across Libya, including Tripoli, are studying together, reflecting a sense of national cohesion despite the country’s political divisions.

Libya remains split between rival administrations in the east and west, though university officials emphasized plans to maintain open access and international academic partnerships as part of long-term rebuilding efforts.

Volunteers working with naval forces and coast guards affiliated with the Libyan National Army rescued seven survivors during recovery operations near the coastal city of Tobruk, close to Libya’s border with Egypt, the Red Crescent said in a statement.

The group said the vessel had been stranded at sea for more than a week before rescue teams reached it. Security officials said they expected the bodies of the nine missing migrants to wash ashore in the coming days.Images released by the Red Crescent showed volunteers placing bodies in black plastic bags before loading them onto pickup trucks for transport.

Libya remains a major transit route for migrants, many from sub-Saharan Africa, attempting to reach Europe by crossing the Mediterranean in overcrowded and often unsafe boats after fleeing poverty, violence and political instability.

Shipwrecks and deaths along the central Mediterranean route remain frequent, with human rights groups and international agencies repeatedly warning about the risks posed by traffickers operating from Libya’s coast.

On Tuesday, Libya’s attorney general said Tripoli Criminal Court sentenced four members of a criminal gang based in the western city of Zuwara to prison terms of up to 22 years for human trafficking, kidnapping for ransom and torture.

In a separate case, the Public Prosecutor’s Office ordered the arrest of another trafficking group accused of sending migrants from Tobruk on a deteriorating vessel that later capsized, causing the deaths of 38 Sudanese, Egyptian and Ethiopian nationals, according to the attorney general.

Authorities said the gang had arranged the sea crossing despite the unsafe condition of the boat, adding to growing scrutiny of trafficking networks operating along Libya’s eastern and western coasts.

Libya has struggled for years to control migrant smuggling routes amid political fragmentation and weak law enforcement, with rival administrations and armed groups competing for influence across the country.