In a new indication of diminishing chances of new armed clashes between the military parties in eastern and western Libya, and perhaps fading away altogether, the parties’ representatives concluded new agreements in Tripoli, the most prominent of which was the formation of a joint force with various tasks, and opening the door to discussion on demobilizing militia members and integrating them into the ministries of defense and interior, in the presence of representatives of large and powerful armed formations in the Libyan West, for the first time.
Once again, the new progress made by the military committees in their negotiations embarrassed the political parties and increased pressure on them, to end the disputed negotiating files and to follow the example of what has been achieved in the military track, which the UN envoy to Libya Abdoulaye Bathily called for explicitly.
Surprising names
The Libyan National Army (LNA) General Commander Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar sent a large delegation to Tripoli, on a visit that is the second of its kind in a matter of months, to resume negotiations with representatives of the General Staff in Tripoli, whose files include unifying the military institution.
The delegation coming from Benghazi was more extensive than it was in the first visit, and included surprising names of the commanders of the largest military brigades and battalions of LNA that were fighting a war on the outskirts of Tripoli a few years ago, in addition to the Chief of the General Staff, Lieutenant General Abdul Razzaq Al-Nadhouri, and Faraj Qaim, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Interior in the government of Fathi Bashagha, and Khairy Al-Tamimi, Director of Khalifa Haftar’s office, with members of the 5+5 Joint Military Committee, Imrajaa Al-Amami and Al-Mahdi Al-Sharif.
On the other hand, the hosting delegation witnessed the participation of surprising names as well, led by the commander of the largest armed brigade in Tripoli, Abdul Ghani al-Kikli, known as “Ghaniwa”, and the leaders of some other brigades that a few months ago it was difficult to imagine sitting at a negotiating table with any party representing the Army Commander in Benghazi, Khalifa Haftar.
Closing statement
After two days of discussions, the participants in the security meeting in Tripoli issued a final statement replete with positive indicators, on Monday, March 26, emphasizing “the need for the continuation of the Libyan-Libyan dialogue, and within the Libyan territories, without the interference of foreign parties,” and also stressed the “full commitment of all what resulted from the dialogue between the military and security leaders with the 5+5 Joint Military Committee in its first meeting in Tunis and the second in Tripoli, and the renunciation of fighting and violence in all its forms on the entire Libyan soil.
The statement recommended “continuing work to unify military institutions through the Chiefs of Staff, unify security institutions and the rest of state institutions, create a unified government that leads all state institutions, and increase efforts to solve the problems of the displaced and those affected by fighting and wars, and complete national reconciliation and reparation efforts.”
Integration and joint force
While the final statement did not reveal the full details of the important military meeting that Tripoli hosted, identical press and military sources revealed the details of the prominent issues that were discussed and some initial agreements were concluded.
According to these sources, the meeting in the capital will be followed by close meetings in the Libyan east, and in the city of Sirte, in preparation for announcing the joint military force formed from the three regions, according to the plan that was reached in the meetings that took place during the last period, in the talks that took place between the Chief of Staff of LNA, Lieutenant General Abdel Razek Al Nadhouri, and the Chief of Staff in Tripoli, Lieutenant General Muhammad Al Haddad, with the participation of leaders from the Military Committee.
The sources confirmed that the agreement includes three phases, starting with joint work to preserve and secure the southern border, and the second phase will focus on settling the conditions of the displaced who have not committed war crimes and have not been accused of terrorism, while the third phase will work on dissolving the armed formations and reintegrating them into the military and security institutions according to the plan agreed upon.
Praise by the UN envoy
The Special Representative of the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Abdoulaye Bathily, praised what he described as the “national spirit” demonstrated by the participants in the 5+5 Military Committee meeting with the commanders of military and security units in the western, eastern and southern regions, held in Tripoli, stating, “Yesterday’s meeting was a great trust building exercise for Libyan security and military actors. I commend the spirit of patriotism participants demonstrated and hope they can be an example to others working to secure solutions to Libya’s political crisis.”
Support by the Dbeibeh government
For her part, Najla al-Mangoush, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Government of National Unity (GNU), said, “The meeting of the military and security forces in Tripoli is a positive indication of the Libyans’ ability to unite in order to create conditions for holding elections.” She added, “The efforts of the UN mission to bring points of view together coincide with our conviction in the ability of Libyans to produce a political and peaceful solution, and we encourage the continuation of meetings between Libyans inside Libya.”
Axis of rejection
Despite the great official and popular support for the meeting of the military leaders in Tripoli, which strengthens the state of peace and the military armistice and weakens the prospects of any new major war in Libya, some leaders of the armed brigades and political leaders in western Libya declared their opposition to receiving a delegation of military leaders affiliated with Khalifa Haftar in the capital, Tripoli.
Among the most prominent military names in Tripoli that criticized these meetings was the military leader, Muhammad Khalil Issa, who currently holds the position of Undersecretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of GNU, headed by Abdul Hamid al-Dbeibeh. Issa commented on these meetings, saying, “Reconciliation does not take place with criminals, nor by concluding deals and agreements with them, and Haftar’s entry into these meetings aims to reach the sources of power and money and increase his influence in other ways.”
Issa added, “I am very sorry when I find some of the leaders of Burkan al-Ghadab (a gathering of armed brigades in Tripoli) dragged into these dubious meetings that some countries have arranged. The question is, where were these countries when Tripoli was hit with heavy weapons and there were attempts for invading the city of Misrata?”
Sami Al-Saadi, a former leader of the Libyan Fighting Group and Secretary-General of Research at Dar Al-Ifta in Tripoli, also attacked the military and security meeting in Tripoli, saying: “it is shameful for GNU to receive Haftar’s representatives in Tripoli.” Al-Saadi addressed the Dbeibeh government, saying, “Either you carry out your mission, preserve the trust, and strive to rid Libya, all of Libya, of war criminals, or at least they are prevented from entering Tripoli, and they remain in The eastern region as a fait accompli until Allah accomplishes a matter that is already destined.
Successful move
On the other hand, many prominent Libyan parties expressed their support for the new progress on the military track. They saw in it great support for resolving the Libyan problem once and for all, and in this context, a member of the House of Representatives, Jibril Wahida, said, “The meeting of the 5 + 5 Military Committee and the military leaders in Tripoli is a successful step towards unifying the military institution, and is in the interest of resolving the Libyan crisis and paving the way for elections.” . He added, “There is complete conviction among everyone that the continued deterioration of the security situation will not serve the country, and the reality is that everyone must work in accordance with the context of unifying the military institution and unifying political visions.” “We hope, after the step of unifying the military institution, to work on collecting weapons that are scattered randomly, provided that they are at the disposal of a unified Libyan army under an elected civilian authority,” he added.
Report written by: Zayed Hadiya – Independent Arabia
Translated by: The Libya Update