UPDATE 4-White House says Trump spoke to Libyan commander Haftar on Monday

The White House said on Friday that President Donald Trump spoke by phone to Libyan commander Khalifa Haftar and discussed "ongoing counterterrorism efforts" by the leader of a military assault on the capital of Libya in opposition to the country's internationally recognized government. A White House statement said Trump "recognized Field Marshal Haftar’s significant role in fighting terrorism and securing Libya’s oil resources, and the two discussed a shared vision for Libya’s transition to a stable, democratic political system".

It was unclear why the White House waited several days to announce the phone call, which took place on Monday. Europe and the Gulf have been divided over a push by Haftar's forces to seize Tripoli. Shelling could be heard in southern parts of the Libyan capital on Friday, as on previous days, residents said. At least seven people had been killed as of Tuesday, a day after Trump's call to Haftar. The current death toll is not known.

At least 2,000 people protested on Tripoli's central Martyrs' Square on Friday against Haftar and his offensive, with some criticizing Trump's call to the commander. "The call has no meaning but we will respond to it," said Abdelrizaq Musheirib, a protester.

Ahmed Mismari, spokesman for Haftar's Libyan National Army (LNA), declined to comment on Trump's call during a news conference on Friday. CEASEFIRE CALL

Both the United States and Russia said on Thursday they could not support a U.N. Security Council resolution calling for a ceasefire in Libya at this time. Also on Thursday, mortar bombs crashed down on a suburb of Tripoli, almost hitting a clinic, after two weeks of an offensive by Haftar's eastern troops on the capital, which is held by the internationally recognized government.

Russia objects to the British-drafted resolution blaming Haftar for the latest flare-up in violence when his Libyan National Army (LNA) advanced to the outskirts of Tripoli earlier this month, diplomats said. The United States did not give a reason for its decision not to support the draft resolution, which would also call on countries with influence over the warring parties to ensure compliance and for unconditional humanitarian aid access in Libya. The country has been gripped by anarchy since Muammar Gaddafi was toppled in 2011.

White House national security adviser John Bolton also spoke recently to Haftar. Jalel Harchaoui, research fellow at the Clingendael Institute international relations think-tank in The Hague, said the Trump phone call was tantamount to supporting Haftar's operation and thus creates "an environment where a military intervention by foreign states, like Egypt, is likelier".

"One reason behind Trump’s phone call is that Haftar’s army has revealed itself less powerful than the Libyan strongman had claimed," Harchaoui said. Haftar was among officers who helped Gaddafi rise to power in 1969 but fell out with him during Libya's war with Chad in the 1980s. Haftar was taken prisoner by the Chadians and had to be rescued by the CIA after having worked from Chad to overthrow Gaddafi.

He lived for around 20 years in the U.S. state of Virginia before returning home in 2011 to join other rebels in the uprising that ousted Gaddafi. (Reporting By Steve Holland; Additional reporting by Michelle Nichols at the United Nations, Ayman al-Warfalli in Benghazi and Ulf Laessing and Hani Amara in Tripoli; Editing by David Gregorio and Gareth Jones)