World powers will push for sanctions against anyone who disrupts Libya’s electoral process and political transition, according to draft conclusions of a conference they are holding later on Friday in Paris. The meeting, which will include the leaders of France, Libya, Germany and Egypt, as well as the US vice …
Read More »Libya’s PM Dbeibah to run for president, as election turmoil grows
The head of Libya’s national unity government plans to run for president next month, according to a senior official, an apparent breach of a pledge to remain neutral when he took office in March under an UN-backed peace process. Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah has become popular with big public spending programs after …
Read More »Libyan elections commission to start registering candidates in Nov – commission head
Registration for candidates in Libya’s presidential and parliamentary elections should open in November, the head of the electoral commission said on Sunday. Elections are a key step in a U.N.-backed process to end a decade of violence by creating a new political leadership whose legitimacy is widely accepted. But wrangling …
Read More »East Libyan forces and Chadian rebels clash in southern Libya
The Libyan National Army (LNA) of eastern-based commander Khalifa Haftar clashed with Chadian rebel forces in the south of Libya on Tuesday and Wednesday, both sides said. The fighting underscores the risk of further instability in the Sahel region, where an array of groups operate across borders and where fighting …
Read More »Worst Tripoli fighting in a year shows limits of Libya peace push
Fighting broke out in Tripoli early on Friday between rival armed forces, witnesses said, the heaviest clashes in the Libyan capital since the conflict between eastern and western factions paused a year ago. A resident of the Salah al-Din district in southern Tripoli said shooting began at about 2.30 a.m. …
Read More »Suicide attacker kills self but no others in Libyan desert town
A suicide bomber attacked a checkpoint into the Libyan town of Zella on Sunday, killing himself but causing no other casualties, a spokesman for the eastern-based Libyan National Army (LNA), which controls that area, said. Libya has endured a decade of violence and chaos since the 2011 NATO-backed uprising against …
Read More »Germany, UN host conference to push for progress in Libya
Germany and the United Nations are bringing together representatives of Libya with powers that have interests in the country at a conference Wednesday which aims for progress toward securing elections in the North African nation and the removal of foreign fighters.
Read More »Libyan unity PM declares coast road open but eastern forces still block it
The head of Libya’s unity government on Sunday declared the main coast road across its inactive front line reopened, but eastern-based forces allowed no traffic through, underscoring unresolved divisions that threaten a fragile peace process.
Read More »Turkish, Qatari and German ministers visit Libya amid ceasefire efforts
Turkey and Qatar’s defence ministers and Germany’s foreign minister visited the Libyan capital Tripoli on Monday amid efforts to secure a ceasefire in the divided country, Libyan and Turkish media reported. Turkey provided crucial military support to the Tripoli-based Government of National Accord (GNA) to help it stave off a …
Read More »Turkey supplies weapons to Libya following a plan to besiege Greece and Egypt: Report
Turkey has reportedly sent the latest KORKUT anti-aircraft system to Libya. The latest satellite images posted to a Twitter account showed that Turkish anti-aircraft systems in Korkut were located at Al-Watiya Air Base in western Libya, citing Pentapostagma. The air base is extensively equipped by both the Turkish Armed Forces …
Read More »Trump, Erdoğan discuss establishing demilitarised zone in Libya
U.S. President Donald Trump and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdoğan discussed steps to establish a demilitarised zone in Libya in a phone call, Al Jazeera said on Thursday. Trump and Erdoğan also discussed possible ways to achieve the withdrawal of all foreign forces and mercenaries from Libya and emphasised …
Read More »ISIL will bounce back if Libya civil war doesn’t end, study warns
US-based researcher says the armed group is ‘regrouping’ and remains a ‘persistent’ threat in the oil-rich nation. The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL or ISIS) remains a “persistent threat” in Libya and could rise again unless the country’s long-running conflict is brought to an end, a new …
Read More »Libyan desert will swallow Egyptian soldiers, official warns
Libya’s Deputy Parliament Speaker Jalal Saleh Shuwaidi has warned Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi against plans to send troops to assist militias loyal to putschist Gen. Khalifa Haftar, saying that the Libyan desert would swallow Egypt if it proceeded. Noting that the Egyptian military has no power to enter another …
Read More »Haftar asked Washington for help in controlling Libya’s sea and land borders
Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar’s Libyan National Army (LNA) sent a message to Washington on Sunday calling for international control of land and sea border crossings and ports to prevent weapons from being sent to the capital’s government, Al Arabiya TV channel reported. “The LNA insists on international control over land …
Read More »UAE official tells Turkey to stop meddling in Arab affairs over Libya
The United Arab Emirates minister of state for foreign affairs said on Saturday that Turkey should stop interfering in Arab affairs, criticising comments on Libya made by Turkey’s defence minister. Turkish media had reported the Turkish minister making remarks critical of the UAE’s actions over Libya. The UAE, alongside Egypt …
Read More »Over 100 civilians killed in Libyan conflict between April and June
More than 100 civilians including children were killed by ground fighting, explosive remnants, and air raids in Libya between April and June, according to the United Nations. The figure is an increase of 65 percent from the first three months of the year, the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) …
Read More »Libya GNA army wants to enter Sirte ‘peacefully’
The Libyan armed forces loyal to the internationally recognised Government of National Accord (GNA) are waiting for a political solution to enter the city of Sirte “peacefully”. A spokesman for the Sirte and Al-Jafra operation of the Libyan armed forces, Brigadier Abdul Hadi Dara, said the Libyan army wishes to …
Read More »Big risk of regional war in Libya, UN says
Stephanie Williams, the deputy head of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya for political affairs, said there is a “huge risk” of direct confrontation between rival foreign powers in Libya, the Financial Times reported on Monday. Williams said the chances of a miscalculation around the rebel-held Mediterranean city of …
Read More »US military claims Russia sending military equipment to Libya
The United States military has said Russia appears to be sending more military equipment to its mercenaries in Libya, including in the flashpoint city of Sirte, in breach of an arms embargo. The US military’s Africa Command (AFRICOM) said on Friday there was mounting evidence from satellite photos of Moscow’s …
Read More »Turkey warns Egypt over Libya, lashes out at Emmanuel Macron’s role
Turkey warned Egypt against any deployment of forces in the Libyan civil war and sharply criticized French President Emmanuel Macron’s role, highlighting the threat of escalating violence and geopolitical rivalries in the oil-rich country. The remarks by Ibrahim Kalin, spokesman of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, come days after Egypt’s …
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