What’s next for Libya?
What has been happening in Libya? While a weak, UN-backed administration holds the Libyan capital of Tripoli, the city is under siege by Haftar’s forces, which currently have control of most of the rest of the country. However, the hope sparked by last month’s meetings was shortlived; on Sunday, the UN’s deputy special envoy for Libya, Stephanie Williams, described the current truce between the two sides as a “joke”. Start your trial subscription today–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––What lies ahead for Libya? However, “unless western powers can hold the sponsors of this conflict to their promises to disengage, there will be more fighting”.
Source:Libya Today
February 17, 2020 15:45 UTC
Libya Faces Disaster If Oil Blockade Continues
Libya is facing financial disaster if the Libyan National Army does not lift the oil port blockade, the Prime Minister of the UN-recognized Government of National Accord said as quoted by local media. “Losses from the oil shutdowns have exceeded $1.4bn. Since then, Libya’s oil production has slumped from over 1.2 million bpd to less than 200,000 bpd. Despite rounds and rounds of talks, the warring sides cannot seem to find common ground for a ceasefire that would last long enough for oil production to start recovering. “We warned against using oil as a pressure card,” Serraj also said, as quoted by Reuters.
Source:Libya Today
February 17, 2020 15:22 UTC
EU States to Deploy Ships Off Libya in Sign of Military Muscle
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Source:Libya Today
February 17, 2020 15:15 UTC
EU agrees new mission to enforce Libya arms embargo
BRUSSELS: EU foreign ministers agreed Monday to a naval operation to enforce an arms embargo on war-torn Libya, overcoming objections from countries who feared it may encourage new migrant flows. The mission will be authorized to intervene to stop arms shipments, EU diplomatic chief Josep Borrell said, insisting the vessels would not be “having a promenade” in the Mediterranean. Making the arms embargo work is seen as crucial to stabilising the Libyan conflict. Military commanders will propose many of the operational details, including the number of ships and the exact geographical scope, for EU foreign ministers to approve at their next meeting on March 23. “There is a basic consensus that we now want a military operation and not a humanitarian mission,” Schallenberg said.
Source:Libya Today
February 17, 2020 13:49 UTC
EU gloomy about reviving Libya naval mission
By AFPMore by this AuthorBrussels,EU foreign ministers are unlikely to revive a naval operation to enforce an arms embargo on war-torn Libya on Monday, the bloc's diplomatic chief said, saying a number of countries were still against the plan. The Libya crisis is on the agenda for EU ministers meeting in Brussels on Monday, but the bloc's high representative for foreign affairs Josep Borrell said he was not hopeful of reaching an agreement on Sophia. MOVE IMPORTANTMaking the arms embargo work is seen as crucial to stabilising the Libyan conflict, where the UN-backed Tripoli government is under attack from the forces of military strongman Khalifa Haftar, who controls much of the country's south and east. A senior UN official warned Sunday that a fragile truce agreed in January but regularly breached is "holding by a thread". Former Spanish foreign minister Borrell has said the renewed mission would focus on known weapons smuggling routes, away from the areas that human traffickers use to bring migrants from Libya.
Source:Libya Today
February 17, 2020 13:07 UTC
[Libyans let down 9 years immediately after their revolution
%MINIFYHTML218b8492f740a090fbba9dcd131fe27d11%%MINIFYHTML218b8492f740a090fbba9dcd131fe27d12%9 many years immediately after the revolution, Libya suffers a political, economic and safety disaster and its persons say that their wrestle has been a victim of overseas agendas and inner divisions. In February 2011, the Libyan revolution started in Benghazi. The Libyans had lived for 42 a long time under the oppression of the Libyan ruler, Muammar Gaddafi. Additionally:%MINIFYHTML218b8492f740a090fbba9dcd131fe27d13% %MINIFYHTML218b8492f740a090fbba9dcd131fe27d14%His rebellion gave the Libyans a feeling of hope for a superior future. %MINIFYHTML218b8492f740a090fbba9dcd131fe27d15%%MINIFYHTML218b8492f740a090fbba9dcd131fe27d16%Citizens try to remember vividly the very first hrs of February 17 and subsequent months, but say they stole the revolution.
Source:Libya Today
February 17, 2020 13:07 UTC
Books: with Hisham Matar, Libya protagonist in 'Dedica' - Italy - ANSAMed
PORDENONE - Conversations, books, theater, music, photography will be the protagonists of this year's edition of Dedica, a festival organized by cultural association Thesis in Pordenone on March 7-14. The event presented Monday focuses on Libyan writer Hisham Matar, who has won a Pulitzer prize for his book ''The return. Fathers, Sons and the Land in Between''. Fourteen events will lead the public through the literary world of the author, marked by poetry and themes like exile, loss, pain, separation, absence and the therapeutic effect of beauty. Guests of the event in Pordenone, along with the author, will include Benedetta Tobagi, Michele Riondino, Teho Teardo, Mario Perrotta, Dhafer Youssef, Miriam Selima Fieno, Elio Ciol, Gianluca Buttolo, Francesca Mannocchi, Francesco Strazzari, Chiara Frugoni.
Source:Libya Today
February 17, 2020 12:22 UTC
Libya: Italy role important, constructive - Seibert - Politics - ANSAMed
Libya: Italy role important, constructive - Seibert In heading follow-up committees after Berlin conference(ANSAmed) - BERLIN, FEBRUARY 17 - The fact that the leadership of the Libya follow-up committees from the Berlin peace conference has gone to Italy "shows what an important and constructive role Italy has played in this process," German Chancellor Angela Merkel's spokesman Steffen Seibert told a press conference in Berlin Monday. Seibert confirmed the rotating presidency would move to Italy in March. He said Italy would decide when the next International Follow-up Committee meeting owuld take place in Rome. The Libya crisis is on the agenda for EU ministers meeting in Brussels on Monday, but the bloc's high representative for foreign affairs Josep Borrell said he was not hopeful of reaching an agreement on Sophia. Hungary, whose right-wing government has taken a tough anti-immigration stance, is understood to support Austria's objections.
Source:Libya Today
February 17, 2020 11:48 UTC
Throat-slashing mugger jailed for 18 years
Rawad Briga Abdelsalam has been jailed for 18 years by the Criminal Court today for slashing a woman’s throat during a 2016 mugging after it heard his victim testify to how she still felt the effects of the attack to this day. The woman told the court this morning about how the attack had affected her life. The second victim is currently abroad visiting family, the court was told, and had not been notified with summons for today. The accused was due to be sentenced today after a plea-bargaining agreement was reached by the defence and prosecution. READ MORE: Court gives throat-slash mugging victim opportunity to be heard before sentencing her assailant
Source:Libya Today
February 17, 2020 11:48 UTC
Trump, Turkey call for Russia to stop backing Syrian ‘atrocities’
WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump has called for Russia to end its support for the Syrian regime’s “atrocities” as he expressed US concern over violence in the Idlib region, the White House said Sunday. Backed by Russian air power, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad made fresh gains Sunday as he intensified his assault on the holdout northwestern province of Idlib. Four of the Turkish posts are believed to be encircled by Syrian forces, and Ankara has threatened to attack Damascus if they do not retreat by the end of February. Rebel supporter Turkey and Damascus ally Russia have worked closely on Syria in recent years despite being on opposing sides of the nine-year conflict. States including Russia, France, the United Arab Emirates, and Egypt support strongman Khalifa Haftar, while the UN-recognized Government of National Accord is backed by Turkey and Qatar.
Source:Libya Today
February 17, 2020 11:37 UTC
EU agrees new Libya sea patrols after Austria lifts veto
BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Union will launch a new naval and air mission in the eastern Mediterranean to stop more weapons reaching the warring factions in Libya, foreign ministers agreed on Monday, after Austria lifted its veto. But German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas urged the EU to agree on a naval mission, saying overflights would not be enough. On Sunday, a senior U.N. official warned that the arms embargo was meaningless because there was no-one to enforce it. Schallenberg said Austria had dropped its veto because the new mission was purely military, not humanitarian. A spokesman for Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan’s AK Party said the United Nations, not the European Union, should oversee the arms embargo on Libya.
Source:Libya Today
February 17, 2020 11:26 UTC
Dr Anwar Gargash: UAE supports politicial solution in Libya
Hind Al Soulia - Riyadh - Minister of State for Foreign Affairs said warring factions need to be brought to the negotiating tableThe UAE believes a political solution is the only way to achieve a lasting peace in Libya, Dr Anwar Gargash, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, said on Monday. Dr Gargash added that there was a "pressing need" for the international community to bring Libya's warring factions to the negotiating table in an effort to seek out a permanent end to fighting. Dr Gargash said it was crucial "to contain the role of extremist and terrorist groups". He also said he was deeply concerned by international interventions into Libya, including the movement of mercenaries into the country. Turkey has been accused of facilitating the transfer of Syrian fighters to western Libya to fight for the GNA.
Source:Libya Today
February 17, 2020 10:36 UTC
Libya calls for course-correction within the AMU
Libya's Foreign Ministry stressed on Sunday the importance of correcting the path of the Arab Maghreb Union (AMU), taking into account the developments in the region and the world at large, which requires greater mobility and coordination between the countries of the union, according to the ministry. This came on the occasion of the Arab Maghreb Union founding anniversary, as Libya presides the current session of the AMU. In a statement, the ministry reaffirmed Libya's keenness to maintain the gains achieved by this establishment, insisting that it would continue work despite the aggression perpetrated on its capital with the support of countries that do not want peace for Libya nor the Arab Maghreb in general, according to the statement.
Source:Libya Observer
February 17, 2020 10:07 UTC
UNSMIL deputy head voices concern over deteriorating conditions in Libya
The UNSMIL deputy head, Stephanie Williams has voiced concern over the humanitarian situation in Libya saying that "conditions on the ground are worrying and the truce is very fragile". She disclosed that they have monitored more than 150 violations of the armistice since its announcement on January 12. "The living conditions of Libyans have gone from bad to worse, where one in four Libyans have been affected by the conflict," UNSMIL deputy head said. Williams clarified during a joint press conference with German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, following the meeting of the international special committee for Libya, that the committee has discussed the lifting of the oil embargo in Libya. She also confirmed that Geneva talks are on, and the first meeting will take place within ten days.
Source:Libya Observer
February 17, 2020 09:45 UTC
Bani Walid Mayor denies meeting with Haftar
Mayor of Bani Walid, Salem Alaywan has categorically denied the media talk regarding his visit to Rajma HQ near Benghazi and his meeting with Khalifa Haftar. Alaywan said in an official statement published on Bani Walid Municipality's Facebook page, "The people who appeared in the photos with Haftar only represent themselves, and do not bear any official post inside the Municipality of Bani Walid". Pro-Haftar media outlets have claimed that Haftar had received a delegation of dignitaries from the tribe of Warfalla, including the Mayor of Bani Walid, and representatives of various social components of the city at his HQ in Rajma.
Source:Libya Observer
February 17, 2020 09:00 UTC