(Ivan Sekretarev, File/Associated Press)BENGHAZI, Libya — Libyan army commander Khalifa Hifter on Thursday ordered his forces to march on Tripoli, the capital of the U.N.-backed government, sparking fears of a major showdown with rival militias. Tripoli is under the control of a weak U.N.-backed government and aligned militias, which are rival to the east-based administration and Hifter’s army. “Only intra-Libyan dialogue can solve Libyan problems.”Gharyan is the closest Hifter’s forces have made it to Tripoli. “I am sipping coffee now in Gharyan,” Hifter’s top aide Abdel-Salam al-Hassi told The Associated Press over the phone. The campaign then extended southward as Hifter’s forces took control of key towns and border crossings earlier this year and now is pushing west, toward Tripoli.

Source: The North Africa Journal April 04, 2019 08:17 UTC