Two separate incidents of violence have claimed the lives of at least five people in Libya as the security situation further deteriorates in the conflict-ridden North African country.

In the first incident, at least four people were killed and nearly a dozen injured on Friday during a series of violent clashes between government forces and militants near the Libyan capital Tripoli.

The fierce fighting broke out after the militants launched an assault on the town of Aziziya, located 35 kilometers (21 miles) south of the capital.

Separately, the only functioning airport of Tripoli, Mitiga, was hit by mortar shells fired from an unknown location. A local security source said an airport employee was killed in the attack.

"The mortar... struck a bus transporting three airport employees, killing one and wounding another," media outlets quoted the source as saying.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the fatal attack.

Libya has two rival governments vying for control of the country, with one faction controlling Tripoli, and the other, Libya’s internationally recognized government, governing the cities of Bayda and Tobruk.

The government and elected parliament moved to the eastern city of Tobruk after Libya Dawn militia and some armed groups based in the northwestern city of Misrata seized Tripoli and most government institutions in August 2014.

Several rounds of peace talks brokered by the United Nations have been held in recent months aimed at forming a unity government between the rival factions. The peace talks have failed to deliver any practical results yet.

Libya plunged into chaos after the ouster of longtime dictator Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, which gave rise to a patchwork of heavily-armed militias and deep political divisions.