• London oil price hits $105 on Libya violence
• Sweden warns against travel to Libya, Bahrain

OSLO (AFP) - Norwegian energy giant Statoil on Monday said it had begun evacuating its non-Libyan staff working in the country, which has been rocked by a deadly crackdown on anti-regime protesters.

"Our local headquarters (in Tripoli) is closed," company spokesman Baard Glad Pedersen told AFP.

"The handful of international staff has already left or is in the process of leaving the country," he added.

Statoil holds stakes in two Libyan oil fields, Mabruk and Murzuq.

Pedersen refused to comment on whether production continued on the two fields despite the ongoing violence in the country.

"It is generally up to the operators, in this case Total and Repsol respectively, to communicate about the status of operations," he said.

In London, British energy group BP said Monday it was also making preparations to evacuate some of its staff from Libya, where it employs 140 people, including around 40 foreigners.