Brotherhood Tripoli: Libyan capital turns into den for Erdogan’s gangs

Mustafa Kamel

The mercenaries in Libya have become a time bomb that warns of the dangers of undermining the efforts to heal the Libyan rift, as UN envoy Stephanie Williams recently highlighted those concerns and revealed that the militia stock on Libyan soil includes 20,000 mercenaries, driven by special and regional interests, who are flooding the country with various weapons. In the end, their presence represents a horrific violation of national sovereignty.

The world waited for a long time for Erdogan to admit that he had sent mercenaries from Syria to Libya, as it was estimated that the number of mercenaries Erdogan sent to western Libya ranged between 1,500 and 3,000 fighters, in addition to dozens of regular Turkish forces, including elements of the special forces.

Positions in Tripoli and beyond

Syrian mercenaries loyal to Ankara have been stationed in Libya since their mobilization to Tripoli to fight alongside the Government of National Accord (GNA) and its militias against the Libyan National Army (LNA) forces in several places inside and outside Tripoli, in addition to the presence of GNA militias, and Turkey provides them with military support through mercenaries and weapons, with the aim of protecting the illegal GNA led by Fayez al-Sarraj, as it shares influence in the city and seeks to legitimize itself by establishing the so-called National Guard with Ankara’s blessing.

Dubious Turkish role

Ankara is working to strengthen its military presence at the Al-Watiya airbase with the weapons and equipment that it transferred from Mitiga airport, especially after the last air strike it received there, in addition to establishing an air base and a naval base in the city of Misrata, as part of its endeavor to secure a permanent presence in Libya to seize the country’s wealth.

The mercenary elements loyal to Ankara are stationed in Tripoli, and one of the most prominent places is the Mitiga airport, which is located about 8 km east of Tripoli. The mercenaries have made it a stronghold after the GNA militias took control of it. They are also present in the town of Ain Zara, one of Tripoli’s suburbs, which is considered the third largest suburb and is located 20 km south of Tripoli.

On the eastern borders of Misrata, many of the Ottoman Agha mercenaries are stationed alongside the GNA militias, most notably in the city of Khums. Some of them arrived in the city of Zawiya, and some of them in the Jafara region near the city of Sorman and Gharyan, and they are specialists in advanced weapons and mortars.

Auxiliary militias

Among the most prominent GNA militias is the Special Deterrence Force militia affiliated with the GNA Ministry of Interior, which has 1,500 armed forces and is active east of the capital. This militia is the most armed among the militias. The Tripoli Revolutionaries Brigade is also affiliated with the GNA Ministry of Interior, and it consists of about 1,500 armed men and focuses on vital sites in eastern and central Tripoli. The Nawasi Brigade, also known as the Eighth Force, is subordinate to the GNA Ministry of Interior and plays a role in securing its headquarters, specifically Sarraj’s residence.

Alongside those militias is the Libyan Fighting Group led by Abdelhakim Belhaj. The Misrata Brigades is one of the militias that are the main supporters of the Sarraj government and represent the largest organized military force. The Halbous Brigade is stationed in the city of Misrata and is one of the militias most equipped and supportive of the Tripoli government. It controls the airport road, and its armed men are deployed south of Tripoli.

Violation of arms embargo

This comes at a time when UN Special Representative in Libya Stephanie Williams has warned of the danger of the presence of military bases occupied by foreign forces in Libyan territory, confirming during a speech she gave at the opening of the Libyan Political Dialogue Forum held in Tunis about the existence of ten military bases throughout the country, which are partially or entirely occupied by foreign forces.

Williams noted that there are now 20,000 foreign or mercenary forces in Libya, and this is a terrible violation of the country’s sovereignty.

The forum, which consists of 75 members, is trying to persuade the Libyan parties to agree on a mechanism that would form a transitional administration to lead the country during the presidential and parliamentary elections in December 2021. Williams’ statements reflect her discontent over the lack of progress in the deportation of foreign fighters and mercenaries from Libya, which was part of the ceasefire agreement signed in October. The ceasefire agreement set a three-month deadline for foreign forces to leave Libya. Williams also criticized foreign governments, which she did not specify, for acting with complete impunity and deepening the Libyan conflict with mercenaries and weapons.