UK troops 'operating from French-led Libyan base aiding renegade general'

24.06

French reconnaissance base in Benghazi being used by multinational forces and assisting Khalifa Haftar, according to reports

British forces have based themselves in a French-led multinational military operations centre in Benghazi supporting renegade Libyan general Khalifa Haftar, according to reports in Arabic media and sources within Libya.

The centre, which was set up in December and began operating in February, also houses teams from Italy, Jordan and the UAE, the reports said. 

According to reports on the Huffington Post Arabic website, the centre operates a number of drone aircraft to conduct reconnaissance operations in the east of Libya.

Its fleet includes at least one high-altitude HALE surveillance drone, and a number of other smaller unmanned vehicles.

It is protected by remotely controlled heavy machine guns and rocket launchers, according to the reports.

Sources inside Libya confirmed to Middle East Eye that the centre was operational, but declined to give further details.

The Huffington Post report said that France has contributed 40 personnel who operate drones, analyse intelligence and direct Libyan infantry forces. Italy also provides 40 soldiers, who train Libyan forces and aid the French contingent.

Jordan's 10-soldier contribution runs training for Libyan marines, while four UAE soldiers operate drones and rocket launchers delivered to Haftar's forces. A team of 15 British soldiers collects data but does not take part in military operations.

A spokesman for Britain's Ministry of Defence said it had a long-standing policy of not commenting on special forces operations. 

Middle East Eye previously revealed that British SAS soldiers supported by Jordanian forces are already operating in Libya against Islamic State (IS) militants.

The British foreign secretary, Phillip Hammond, has said that the UK would not "rule out" sending troops to Libya.

The Huffington Post said US Marines were also present at the base, but had declined to give details regarding their role.

Haftar, who leads the "National Libyan Army," is opposed to and has fought IS, but refuses to recognise the UN-backed unity government in Tripoli. 

His forces launched Operation Dignity in Benghazi against groups he declared extremists, leading to the city's "liberation" earlier this year.

French special forces were soon after reported to have moved into the area.

Last year, IS was defeated in the eastern coastal city of Derna by a group called the Shura Council of Mujahideen in Derna, which Haftar still considers an enemy.

Only a select few Libyan commanders have access to the operations centre. Abd al-Salam al-Hasi was named in the report as a coordinator between pro-Haftar forces and the international team.

The existence of the operations room raises questions on international co-operation with Libyan militias not aligned with the new unity government, which is currently leading an assault on the IS stronghold of Sirte.

Crispin Blunt, chairman of the British parliamentary select committee on foreign affairs,last month said supporting Haftar would be a perilous "shortcut" that would sacrifice Libyans' liberty in exchange for stability.

"I don't think the UK and the Western part of the international community should be party to that path," he told an audience at the European Council on Foreign Relations. "We should be doing our level best to make sure that it doesn't happen - when stability is bought at the price of the liberty of the Libyan people."

The British foreign office did not respond to requests for comment on British policy regarding anti-IS groups operating outside the remit of the unity government.

http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/revealed-leaked-tapes-expose-western-support-renegade-libyan-general-185825787

WESTERN RESPONSE 11.07

11.07

On 8 July, a widely publicized leak shed light on active Western military support for Khalifa Haftar and the LNA. Air traffic recordings, reportedly obtained from inside the LNA’s Benina Air Force Base suggest that Haftar is receiving support from French, British and US forces, despite his opposition to the UN-Mediated and Internationally supported Government of National Accord (GNA). The tapes feature pilots and air traffic controllers speaking in Arabic and English, with separate British, American, French and Italian accents being heard.

The leak has caused disarray in the GNA camp, especially within the ranks of Islamists.  This new information is seen as evidence of a Western betrayal of the terms of the Libyan Political Agreement that produced the GNA. This development is likely to fuel further suspicion within the GNA’s coalition, and could possibly facilitate some reunions between Misratans and Islamist hardliners .  Their alliance was previously split during the political dialogue, in favor of rapprochement between ‘moderate’ Misratan forces with those of the eastern Federalists.

Speaking at a House of Lords Committee hearing on 7 July, Britain’s Ambassador to Libya Peter Millett said that he that he had visited Tripoli five times since the arrival of the GNA, and that he had stayed overnight on his last visit. He said that the British Embassy’s presence was currently only in Tripoli, and that one or two British Embassy representatives would be in Tripoli “every week” from now on.  Millet did not provide a date for the formal reopening of the embassy.  On ISIS, Millett said there has been “rapid progress” that has forced ISIS into a “very small area of Sirte.”  He said it was not clear if the lower numbers of ISIS in Sirte were because ISIS had “dispersed” within Libya during the battle, and noted that if this was the case, ISIS in Libya would now “pose a different type of threat,” implying ISIS is returning to its roots as an insurgent rather than a state builder.

http://eyeonisisinlibya.com/western-response/western-11-july-2016/

WESTERN RESPONSE 04.07

04.07

Western countries continue to project support for the Government of National Accord (GNA), with a number of representatives travelling to Tripoli throughout last week to discuss immediate assistance. Ambassadors from the UK, France and Germany met with the Presidency Council (PC) and the GNA on 30 June. Italy’s foreign undersecretary Vincenzo Amendola was in Tripoli on 3 July for talks with the PC as well. His delegation signed a strategic agreement with the Libyan Civil Aviation authority to reestablish air navigation protocols, key towards normalizing Libyan aviation operations. Italy is one of the most active supporters of the GNA, helping to treat wounded Bunyan Marsus fighters, and providing medical supplies for Misrata, Tripoli and Benghazi. Italy is also said to be involved in back-channeling between the Misratans and Khalifa Haftar, to help mediate a political resolution.

Russia is also emerging as a player that may facilitate such a deal. Haftar travelled to Moscow on 27 June, followed immediately by GNA deputy prime minister Ahmed Metig on 29 June, an influential Misratan leader who is known for his opposition to Haftar. Both visits came upon direct invitation from Moscow, but the optics of the visits revealed the Russian position on the GNA. Haftar met with head of Russia’s National Security Council, Defense Minister, and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov to discuss arms supplies and political support, while Metig was only met by their respective deputies. Officially supportive of the process, Russia is skeptical of the GNA, seeing it as a Western implant and insisting that the GNA must first receive official endorsement by the House of Representatives (HoR).

Gulf countries such as Oman and Saudi Arabia are also likely to play a key role in attempting to broker an agreement in the near future.  UN Special Representative Martin Kobler met with HoR Chairman Ageelah Saleh, and a delegation of HoR members and eastern tribal leaders, in Muscat on 28 June.  Although Kolber said the meetings were positive, no breakthroughs were made. Rumors indicate that Saudi Arabia is also looking to take the lead in mediating a resolution between Saleh and GNA Prime Minister Fayez Serraj after Ramadan. During his visit to Tripoli on 3 July, Kobler said that a new political stage will commence after Ramadan, whereby only a unified military structure from the three regions under the GNA will be able to request lifting of the arms embargo.

http://eyeonisisinlibya.com/western-response/western-4-july-2016/

LNA forces capture Libya Shield camp in Ganfouda

24.02

By Ayman Amzein

The camp in Benghazi’s Ganfouda district used by Libya Shield No. 1 as its headquarters today fell to the Libyan National Army’s 302 and 308 brigades. It is the latest in a number of gains by the LNA as it mops up remaining centres of opposition held by Islamist insurgents.

Saiqa special forces commander Wanish Bukhamada in Gwarsha yesterday 

Other gains over the past 24 hours in Ganfouda and Gwarsha include the Al-Jouadi residential village in Ganfouda, the half-finished housing estate in Garyounis/Gwarsha that was being built by the China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC) prior to the revolution, the compound of a Turkish company in Gwarsha, the Al-Jouf company in Ganfouda and the fertility treatment centre in Gwarsha.

Today also saw more strikes by LNA MiG fighters in Ganfouda.  They continued after sunset.

According to the LNA, many fighters from the so-called Islamic State (IS) were killed during the day, However, no numbers have been given.

The LNA designates all those it is fighting as “IS”, although many are from other Islamist forces.

https://www.libyaherald.com/2016/06/24/nla-forces-capture-libya-shield-camp-in-ganfouda/

LNA claims control of Garyounis

22.06

Following a new offensive in Benghazi today, a top Libyan National Army (LNA) commander who asked not to be named told the Libya Herald that it now has “complete control” of the entire Garyounis district. This followed air strikes in the area today. Reports also speak of there having fierce fighting in the district and elsewhere involving 106 infantry brigade, 309 Tobruk brigade and Battalion 21.

There were, however, continued clashes in Gwarsha as well as Suq Al-Hout and Sabri, the commander said, adding that there had been a lot of damage in Garyounis.

He also added that he anticipated the liberation of the city to be declared by Eid and that, once announced, Benina airport would open immediately.

Repeated declarations of an imminent announcement of the liberation of Benghazi have been made by LNA officials, including Khalifa Hafter, over the past two years.

Despite the statement about all of Garyounis being taken, the LNA is officially reported saying today that it now has 90 percent of it. In other advances, however, it is said to have taken most of the tourist village at Ganfouda.

It reports four soldiers killed and says four soldiers were killed and ten others wounded in today’s fighting.

Throughout much of the day, as yesterday, the sound of what appeared to be drones flying over head could be heard in the city.

https://www.libyaherald.com/2016/06/22/lna-claims-control-of-garyounis/

Faiez Serraj holds first official cabinet meeting

22.06

By Moutaz Mathi

The Government of National Accord has held its first cabinet meeting today in Tripoli, at the Bu Setta naval base. Presided over by Presidency Council head and prime minister Faiez Serraj, who was flanked by two of his deputies, Ahmed Maetig and Fathi Majbri, sixteen other members attended.

These included defence minister Mahdi Barghathi, foreign minister Mohamed Siala and interior minister Arif Khojja as well as at least one minister with special responsibilities.

The full cabinet, including the nine Presidency Council and the five special responsibility ministers, numbers 28 members.

https://www.libyaherald.com/2016/06/22/94071/

How IS is surrounded in Sirte

22.06

Salem Taleb focuses on the Ouagadougou Centre with his binoculars. The Islamic State HQ in Sirte is three kilometres away but IS fighters are closer, about 1.5 kilometres, hiding in three buildings ahead of the checkpoint held by the Third Military Forces. It is a Misrati brigade and Salem Taleb belongs to it.

“They have rockets, snipers and they use suicide cars. They currently attack at night because it’s a full moon,” Taleb told Libya Herald.

The checkpoint is south of Sirte, on the main road to Benghazi. Every 12 hours, a new team of a dozen men with machine guns change shift to control the area. The mission is very clear and simple: don’t move ahead and make sure no IS fighters escape.

“IS is trapped in a 25-square-kilometre area in Sirte. They can’t leave. We’ve decided to lay siege to them until they run out of ammunition,” a commander in the Bunyan Marsous operations room, said.

The IS zone is downtown between coastal districts nos. 1, 2 and 3 in the north to Ouagadougou centre in the south. Mohamed (he doesn’t want to give his real name) is in charge of intelligence. He updates a Google Earth map with IS fighters’ positions in the buildings in the city center with blue pins. “This strategy will cost less lives and less destruction than launching a massive offensive with airstrikes”, he explains.

Ibrahim Beitalmal, head of Misrata military council, estimates that around 500 IS fighters are left in Sirte out of the 2,500 there previously. Other militaries sources say between 800 and 1,000 have been killed, while the others managed to flee before the Bunyan Marsous forces surrounded the town. East of Sirte, in Harawa and Nuflyia, the military operation launched by Faiez Serraj’s internationally-recognised government, has drawn in the Petroleum Facilities Guards (PFG) led by Ibrahim Jedhran and Colonel Bashir Budafira from the Ajdabiya-Sirte operations room. Offshore, the sea access is protected by coast guards from the central sector.

“We have two tugboats with machine guns on them, a 16-metre boat with light weapons and two Zodiac boats to protect the port. We have no help from other Libyan cities, not even from Tripoli”, Reda Essa, the local commander of the coast guards, says.

The plan is to destroy the Islamic State in Sirte within a month. So far the offensive, which started on 12 May, has killed about more than 200 of its fighters and wounded more than 500. “The Bunyan Marsous operation gathers brigades from western Libya towns and cities such as Misrata Tripoli, Janzour, Nalut, Zliten, Tajoura, the Wershefana area, and more,” Colonel Mohamed Gasri, spokesman for the operations room says. “Anyone can join us.”

He adds that even Khalifa Haftar is welcome if he recognises Faiez Serraj’s Government of National Accord (GNA). It may be a joke. Several other leading military figures like Ibrahim Baitalmal and Reda Essa told this newspaper that they would never accept Haftar among them.

Officially, a report is sent daily to the Presidency Council about the military situation in Sirte. But on the front, the brigade are more or less free to do what they want but they feel abandoned.

“It’s me who decides who can leave the frontline for a while. I don’t have to refer to anyone regarding my brigade”, Rami Ragou, the chief of a brigade from Nalut, says. His men are in charge to protect the Zaafran roundabout, which is the west entrance of Sirte and well known as the place IS used to crucify “misbelievers”.

Rami Ragou complains that his group will run out of ammunition soon. “I haven’t received anything. We’ll have to go back to Nalut for ammunition.” All of his men and most of the fighters this newspaper had seen were without any basic military equipment such as helmets or bullet-proof jackets.

But the Bunyan Marsous operations room is allegedly receiving help from 15 to 20 advisers from British and American special forces. “They help us to locate the IS fighters”, Mohamed Gasri said.

https://www.libyaherald.com/2016/06/22/how-is-is-surrounded-in-sirte/