LNA slaps Ankara in Sabha after movement of Turkish mercenaries in south

Amira Sherif

It seems that Turkey will continue to spread its poison throughout Libya as long as the Government of National Accord (GNA) opens the way for it to sabotage and destroy through the spread of Turkish mercenaries throughout the country. According to media reports, the city of Sabha is witnessing an alert between the GNA militias on the one hand and the elements of the Libyan National Army (LNA), which raises fears of the possibility that armed clashes could break out in the city despite talk of understandings to end the crisis in the country.

For his part, the Director of the Moral Guidance Department of the Libyan National Army, Khaled al-Mahjoub, revealed that there are attempts to move Turkish mercenaries in southern Libya, explaining that the army forces have dealt heavy blows to terrorist organizations in Sabha.

He said that the elements had received money from Tripoli to destabilize security and stability in southern Libya, especially the city of Sabha, and that they were recruiting foreign mercenaries, noting that the commander of the Sabha military region confirmed that units from the region had confronted these elements.

Earlier, the official spokesman for the Libyan army, Major General Ahmed al-Mesmari, announced the monitoring of a large mobilization of militias and thousands of mercenaries and foreign fighters in Al-Hisha, Qadahiyah, Zamzam and all of eastern Misrata.

He said that the militias have raised the level of preparedness and threatened to attack LNA areas in Sirte, Jufrah and the entire east, noting that what the militias are doing is a clear violation of the principles of the ceasefire.

In a statement, Mesmari revealed that these groups receive their orders directly from Turkish intelligence, which leads operations to support the Brotherhood and extremist groups in Libya.

It is noteworthy that the LNA controls most of the area of ​​Sabha and cities in southwestern Libya, but some tribal militants still owe allegiance to the GNA.

For its part, the LNA threatened everyone who begged him to harm the security and stability of Sabha and its surroundings, as the region is witnessing a security alert following clashes between the LNA and mercenaries affiliated with the GNA.

While the security situation in Sabha has become safe after the intervention of the LNA, the Libyan file remains stagnant due to Turkish interventions in the crisis and its obstruction of political settlement efforts.

The illegal GNA, with its recent attempt in Sabha, violated the ceasefire agreement signed by the 5+5 Joint Libyan Military Committee in Geneva on October 23.

The Geneva agreement provides for the evacuation of all contact lines from the military units and armed groups by returning them to their camps, coinciding with the departure of all mercenaries and foreign militants from Libyan territory by land, sea and air within a maximum period of three months from the date of signing the ceasefire.

In October, the LNA forces deployed armed units in areas in the desert in southern Libya after reports of armed robberies against Libyans were received.

The LNA’s Military Information Division revealed that the Ubari security room conducted mobile and stationary patrols on the road linking the cities of Ubari, Sabha and Marchan Road after reports had been received of the existence of war crimes and armed robbery in these areas.

In September, the LNA thwarted a plot by a terrorist group affiliated with ISIS in the Abdul Kafi neighborhood of the southern city of Sabha, which was covering up under the pretext that they were a displaced family from outside the city.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights revealed that the number of conscripts who went to Libya so far reached about 18,000 mercenaries, among them 350 children under the age of 18, of whom about 10,750 returned to Syria after the end of their contracts and taking their financial dues, while the census reached 10,000 terrorists who arrived in Libya.

In January 2019, the LNA launched Operation Enforcement of Law, undermining the hopes of terrorist groups and human and fuel traffickers and expelling Chadian mercenaries.

The LNA accuses Turkey of being behind the attempts to destabilize the country by continuing to transfer weapons and mercenaries to the Libyan west without deterrence.

Many Libyans, along with the international community, reject Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s mercenaries remaining in Libya, and Turkey has so far sent about 20,000 fighters from Syria, ignoring international warnings about fueling the Libyan war.

In a resolution referring to Turkey’s insistence on dominating western Libya, the Turkish parliament announced last month its intention to extend the missions of Turkish forces in Libya for 18 months.

Turkey is the main foreign supporter of the GNA since the signing of a security memorandum of understanding between the two parties in November 2019 in its war against the LNA.

Ankara largely controls the decision-making center of the GNA, which moves according to Erdogan’s directives, as Turkey found in the GNA a way for it to have a presence in Libya and seize the country’s wealth.