Tripoli, Aug 23 (IANS): Libyan authorities have announced the recovery of seven unidentified bodies from a newly discovered mass grave in the northwestern city of Tarhuna.

"Field team of the Search and Recovery Department recovered the remains of seven unidentified bodies from a garbage dump site in Tarhuna," said the General Authority for Research and Identification of Missing Persons in a statement on Monday.

"Forensic laboratories will start working on the remains to be identified," the statement added.

The Authority revealed in January that 278 unidentified bodies had been recovered from mass graves across Tarhuna in 2021, 109 of whom had been identified by DNA tests, the Tripoli-based online news portal The Libya Observer reported.

The Authority also said there are 3,650 missing persons in its registers, Xinhua news agency reported.

Located nearly 90 km south of the capital Tripoli, Tarhuna was once the east-based army's main military operation centre during the war against the former UN-backed government in and around Tripoli.

The forces of the former UN-backed government accused the rival east-based army of mass killings in Tarhuna.