TRIPOLI, Libya (AP) — Surrounded by an Islamist militia, Libya’s newly elected prime minister took office as the country’s interim premier vowed Tuesday not to hand over power, the latest crisis to roil the North African nation as a renegade general leads an offensive against Islamists.

Interim Prime Minister Abdullah Al-Thinni said in a televised statement that he ordered forces guarding the Cabinet building to stand down to avoid bloodshed late Monday night. That’s when militiamen from the Libya Central Shield — one of several militias on the government’s payroll — escorted newly elected Prime Minister Ahmed Maiteg into the building, according to daily newspaper Al-Wasat.