UN-supported Libya government welcomes civil war truce calls
Libya’s east-based forces shoot down suggestion of a truce
(about 4 hours later)
CAIRO — Libya’s United Nations-supported government has welcomed Russian and Turkish calls for a ceasefire in the country’s ongoing civil war, though its rivals appeared cool to the intervention and refrained from endorsing the idea Thursday.
CAIRO — A spokesman for one of Libya’s rival factions has said its forces will keep fighting for the country’s capital after Russia and Turkey called for a ceasefire yesterday.
The Tripoli-based government led by Prime Minister Fayez Sarraj released a statement late Wednesday expressing its full support for “the resumption of the political process and the elimination of the specter of war.”
Spokesman for the self-styled Libyan Arab Armed Forces Ahmed al-Mosmari said in a video statement late Thursday that group’s battalions will still try to take control of country’s capital Tripoli from ‘terrorist groups.’ The armed forces, led by ex-general Khalifa Hifter, have been waging an offensive to try to take the city for months. Russia has helped them with expertise and mercenary fighters.
Libya is currently governed by dueling authorities in the east and in the west. The east-based government is backed by the self-named Libyan National Army, commanded by ex-general Khalifa Hifter. It is supported by the United Arab Emirates and Egypt, as well as France and Russia. The western, Tripoli-based government receives aid from Turkey, Qatar and Italy.
Both Russia and Turkey have been accused of exacerbating the conflict by giving military aid to its parties. Most recently, the Turkish parliament approved last week the deployment of troops to fight on behalf of the United-Nations supported government in Tripoli.
The calls for a stop to the fighting came amid a flurry of diplomatic activity by European powers Wednesday. Turkish President Recep Tayep Erdogan and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin released a joint statement after a meeting in Istanbul calling for a Jan. 12 ceasefire between the warring eastern and western Libyan forces.
The U.N.-backed government, led by Prime Minister Fayez Sarraj, meanwhile, welcomed the proposed ceasefire. It released a statement late Wednesday expressing its full support for “the resumption of the political process and the elimination of the specter of war.”
Esatern Libyan forces have yet to officially respond to the Russian-Turkish ceasefire calls. Brig. Gen. Khaled al-Mahjoub, head of the LNA mobilization department told The Associated Press that military operations are ongoing around Tripoli and the coastal city of Misrata. He said that any truce “is a matter that only Commander Hifter can decide on.”
Libya is currently governed by dueling authorities in the east and in the west. The east-based government is backed by the self-named Libyan Arab Armed Forces, commanded by Hifter. It is supported by the United Arab Emirates and Egypt, as well as France and Russia. The western, Tripoli-based government receives aid from Turkey, Qatar and Italy. Both sides are bolstered by militias which draw from the country’s tribal factions.
Clashes have continued between the two sides this week. Fawzy Onis, a health ministry spokesman with the Tripoli-based government, said artillery shelling by Hifter’s forces killed two paramedics on Thursday near the coastal city of Sirte. The LNA recently seized the town.
Turkish President Recep Tayep Erdogan and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin released a joint statement after a meeting in Istanbul calling for a Jan. 12 truce. They did not specify what the conditions would be.
According to the U.N., more than 200 civilians have been killed and more than 128,000 people have fled their homes since the conflict stepped up in early April of last year. The fighting has threatened to plunge Libya into violent chaos rivaling the 2011 conflict that ousted and killed longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi.
Clashes have continued between the two sides this week. Fawzy Onis, a health ministry spokesman with the Tripoli-based government, said artillery shelling by Hifter’s forces killed two paramedics on Thursday near the coastal city of Sirte. Hifter’s forces recently seized the town.
In their joint statement, the Russian and Turkish presidents did not mention the conditions of their suggested ceasefire.
Observes say the Turkish-Russian suggestion to stop the fighting was unlikely to gain traction with the forces fighting for the country’s eastern government, because it would mean having to sacrifice recent advances they’ve made towards Tripoli. But the meeting between the two powers could show an intent to not worsen the violence.
“It is more like a statement of intent from Russia and Turkey, rather than a deal that is certain to materialize,” said Claudia Gazzini, a senior analyst with the International Crisis Group in Rome. She said that any Tripoli-approved truce would require Hifter to withdraw from areas surrounding Tripoli, which is unlikely to happen.
“If Turkey can assure that some military aid helping Hifter is withdrawn, there is no longer a need for Turkey to deploy massively,” said Claudia Gazzini, a senior analyst with the International Crisis Group in Rome.
Since the outbreak of the conflict in April, the Tripoli-based government known as the Government of National Accord has expressed its willingness to enact a ceasefire and to return to the negotiating table only if its rivals halt their offensive.
The calls for a stop to the fighting came amid a flurry of diplomatic activity by European powers. After a meeting with the Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune on Thursday, Italy’s Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio wrote on his Facebook page that the E.U. must “work together with the countries neighboring Libya to find a solution to the present crisis, which at the moment sees in the cease-fire our principal aim.”
In recent weeks, the fighting has intensified around Tripoli as Erdogan has vowed to send troops to back Sarraj. Turkey’s parliament authorized the deployment of troops last week. Turkey has already begun sending Turkish soldiers to Libya for training and coordination.
The Turkish decision to send reinforcements to Tripoli has elicited condemnation from European governments including Italy, Sarraj’s main European backer.
The Turkish offer of military support is meant to counter that which Russia has been providing Hifter. An agreement between Erdogan and Putin could mean that both will scale down their involvement to avoid further escalation.
According to the U.N., more than 200 civilians have been killed and more than 128,000 people have fled their homes since the conflict escalated in early April of last year amid Hifter’s push towards the capital. The fighting has threatened to plunge Libya into violent chaos rivaling the 2011 conflict that ousted and killed longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi.
“If Turkey can assure that some military aid helping Hifter is withdrawn, there is no longer a need for Turkey to deploy massively,” said Gazzini.
After a meeting with the Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune on Thursday, Italy’s Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio wrote on his Facebook page that the E.U. must “work together with the countries neighboring Libya to find a solution to the present crisis, which at the moment sees in the cease-fire our principal aim.”
The Turkish decision to send reinforcements to Tripoli has elicited strong responses from European governments including Italy, Sarraj’s main European backer. Earlier this week, the EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell and the foreign ministers of Britain, France, Germany and Italy condemned Turkey’s plans to deploy troops to Libya.
In another diplomatic push, Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte met with Hifter in Rome Wednesday and, in Brussels, Sarraj met with European Council President Charles Michel and European Union foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell.
Also on Thursday, Sirte’s main local militia group named Brigade 604 announced that it would fight along side Hifter’s forces after having been allied with the GNA for several months.
The Brigade 604 has played a key role in defeating Islamic State militants and driving them out of the city in 2016.
This announcement came a few days after the LNA had captured the city, which is the hometown of former dictator Moammar Gadhafi.
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Frances D’Emilio in Rome contributed to this report
Frances D’Emilio in Rome contributed to this report
Copyright 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Copyright 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
