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 …
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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 »Egypt, Greece sign maritime deal to counter Libya-Turkey one
Egypt and Greece on Thursday signed a maritime deal that sets the sea boundary between the two countries and demarcates an exclusive economic zone for oil and gas drilling rights. The deal is a response to a similar agreement between Turkey and Libya’s Tripoli-based government last year that has spiked …
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 »Turkey, UAE clash over Libya conflict, trade accusations of interference
A war of words has escalated between Turkey and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) over Libya, where the two states support opposing sides in the African country’s long-running conflict. According to reports, the Emirati minister of state for foreign affairs, Anwar Gargash, has slammed Turkish defense minister for his recent …
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 »72 migrants intercepted off Libyan coast: UNHCR
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) on Saturday said that 72 migrants have been intercepted by the Libyan coast guard off the country’s western coast. The UNHCR tweeted that “72 people were brought back to Tripoli Naval Port by Libyan Coast Guard late last night. UNHCR and the …
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 …
Read More »Libya’s UN-backed government says it will respond to threats from Egypt
Libya’s UN-backed parliament in Tripoli has criticized Egypt’s move to send its soldiers to the country. “We completely reject the Egyptian Parliament’s decision based on an illegitimate invitation by those who claim to represent the Libyan tribes under the guise of ‘parliament’,” the parliament of the Government of National Accord …
Read More »Libya set to explode again as foreign players go all in – Analysis
Seen as nearing a conclusion several times in the last few years, Libya’s long-running civil war looks set to flare up yet again as Turkey-backed forces of the Tripoli-based Government of National Accord (GNA) zero in on the crucial eastern city of Sirte. “Everything is moving towards a massive escalation …
Read More »Egypt parliament approves possible intervention in Libya
Egypt’s parliament voted Monday to authorize the president to deploy troops to neighboring Libya if Turkey-backed forces there, allied with the UN-supported government in Tripoli, move to retake the strategic coastal city of Sirte. An Egyptian intervention would put Turkey and Egypt — in possible direct confrontation. The vote was initially …
Read More »Libyan GNA fighters head for front as battle for Sirte looms
Libya’s internationally recognised Government of National Accord (GNA) on Saturday moved fighters closer to Sirte, a gateway to Libya’s main oil terminals that the GNA says it plans to recapture from the eastern-based Libyan National Army (LNA). Witnesses and GNA military commanders said a column of about 200 vehicles moved …
Read More »Egypt’s parliament to mandate Sisi to intervene militarily in Libya
Informed sources said that the Egyptian parliament – the House of Representatives – is expected to hold a plenary meeting this week to discuss the political and military situation in neighbouring Libya. The sources said the discussion is to be followed by a vote to mandate President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi to …
Read More »Turkey sent up to 3,800 fighters to Libya, Pentagon report says
Turkey sent between 3,500 and 3,800 paid Syrian fighters to Libya over the first three months of the year, the US Defense Department’s inspector general concluded in a new report, its first to detail Turkish deployments in Libya’s war. The quarterly report on counterterrorism operations in Africa by the Pentagon’s …
Read More »Turkey will be the death of NATO: its recent clash with fellow member France off the coast of Libya is an early symptom
When two countries who are supposed to be military allies fall out and almost get themselves into a shooting match, you know there’s going to be trouble ahead. The problem for NATO is, this time, it may prove terminal. For a story that involves high seas skullduggery, clandestine gun-running, a …
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