GNA and Turkish units established full control over a military base in Libya

By Boyko Nikolov On May 18, 2020

TRIPOLI, (BM) – The forces of the Government of National Accord (GNA) of Libya, headed by Faiz Sarraj and supported by Turkish military, announced the establishment of full control over the air base of El-Batu, which until recently had troops of the Libyan National Army (LNA) under the command of Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, learned BulgarianMilitary.com citing the Libyan television channel Libya Alahrar.

“Our troops [GNA] have completely taken control of the military base of El-Vaty,” the commander of the operations of the GNA forces in the area of Tripoli, General Abdel Basit Mervan said.

According to a TV source, in addition to the military units of the GNA, Turkish forces were also involved in the operation, but it’s not specified whether these are pro-Turkish mercenaries or real Turkish military units in Libya.

Since the beginning of May, formations acting on the side of the GNA have sought to dislodge VLA detachments from the strategically important El-Batu base, located 100 km southwest of Tripoli.

During this period, the armed detachments of the GNA tried three times to storm it. The last attack was made about a week ago. However, until recently, the LNA managed to defend its position.

In Libya, for a long time, two executive bodies have existed in parallel: the Sarraja GNA sitting in Tripoli and the temporary cabinet of Abdullah Abdurrahman al-Thani, acting in the east of the country together with the parliament and supported by the LNA.

Libyan civil war

In Libya, armed clashes are currently taking place between supporters of different leaders. The country is led by the Government of National Accord (GNA), headed by Prime Minister Fayez Saraj, the “eastern government” led by Abdullah Abdurrahaman at-Thani.

The eastern government is supported by the commander of the Libyan National Army, Khalifa Haftar.

Recall that January 13 in Moscow, negotiations were held between the heads of the Libyan National Army (LNA) Khalif Haftar and the Government of National Accord (GNA) Faiz Sarraj. Also present were members of the Foreign Ministries of Russia and Turkey.

On the meeting the commander of the Libyan National Army (LNA), Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, has notified Russia about the conditions for continuing negotiations on the signing of a peace agreement in Libya.

According to the requirements of Haftar, the militias operating in Libya are required to surrender weapons in the period from 45 to 90 days. This process should be controlled by a special commission created by the LNA together with the UN

Haftar also refused to recognize Turkey as an intermediary in resolving the situation in Libya, since the Turkish side is not neutral and supports the Government of National Accord (GNA).

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BulgarianMilitary.com
Editorial team