Spain’s biggest oil company Repsol has suspended its operations in Libya, said a spokesman for the company.

The spokesman justified the decision with “the situation of violence and uncertainty” in the North African country.

Repsol was trying to guarantee the security of its employees in Libya, the spokesman said. The oil giant has begun repatriating its staff, according to sources in the Spanish oil sector.

In 2009, Repsol extracted 34,777 oil barrels in Libya daily. That amounted to 3.8 percent of its global production.