The governor of Libya’s Central Bank of Libya (CBL), Siddiq al-Kabir, and other senior bank officials have been forced to leave the country to protect their lives from possible attacks by armed factions, the Financial Times reported on Friday.

This came after the eastern Libyan government in Benghazi announced on Monday that it had suspended oil production and exports until further notice in protest at the Tripoli government’s seizure of the CBL’s headquarters and dismissal of its governor.