Erdogan’s mercenaries undermine stability in Libya

Fatma Abdelghani

Turkey has transferred around 5,000 mercenaries from Syria to Libyan capital Tripoli so far, the United States Africa Command said.

It said in a report that most of the mercenaries transferred to Libya have criminal records and that some of them had committed crimes against civilians in the Libyan capital.

The command noted in its report also that a major chunk of the mercenaries do not have combat expertise and that they are in Libya for money only.

Turkey also transferred hundreds of regular troops to Libya to function as trainers and advisors, the command said.

It warned against the ramifications of the presence of the mercenaries on security conditions in Libya, in general.

It added that this is especially true in the presence of a raft of reports about the crimes committed by the mercenaries in Libya, including theft and sexual violence.

These crimes will cause security conditions to deteriorate in western Libya even more and engender angry reaction from ordinary people, the command said.

Turkey has not suspended the transfer of arms and fighters to Libya, the United Nations said.

Head of the United Nations Mission in Libya Stephanie Williams said the smuggling of mercenaries and arms into Libya continues to happen.

She called on rival parties in Libya to stop their escalations.

Williams said she had already received support for her work from the UK, Egypt, Algeria and Tunisia.

She added that the same states had pledged to offer her support in trying to bring Libyan rivals together.

There is still instability in Libya, Williams said.

She noted that she was working to bridge gaps between Libyan rivals.

Although Ankara declares support to the ceasefire in Libya, it continues to send mercenaries and arms into the North African country, according American and international reports.