The US military accused Russia of deploying fighter aircraft to Libya “repainted to camouflage” their origin in support of mercenaries fighting for eastern-based commander Khalifa Haftar’s forces.
Members of the East Libya-based parliament on Monday rejected an attempted coup by the warlord Khalifa Haftar. This came in a statement issued by 11 prominent members of the Tobruk-based parliament in which they stressed support to a peace initiative proposed by its speaker Aguila Saleh.
Russian fighters in Libya were flown out of a town south of Tripoli by their Libyan allies after retreating from the front lines, the town’s mayor said.
Libyan renegade military commander Khalifa Haftar called on his loyalist forces on Saturday to rally against Turkey, a key ally of his UN-recognised rivals in Tripoli, after suffering heavy losses.
The Libyan Foreign Ministry of the Government of National Accord (GNA) said in a statement on Saturday that it would document the finding of a foreign fighter’s body by Libyan Army forces in southern Tripoli frontline of Salah Al-Deen in coordination with the concerned authorities.
Eastern commander Khalifa Haftar is reported to be about to begin a series of air strikes on Turkish targets in Libya after suffering a week of setbacks in his fight against the Ankara-backed government in Tripoli.
Russia and Turkey backed an immediate ceasefire in Libya during a phone call between both countries’ foreign ministers, Moscow said on Thursday.
Turkey has warned that attacks on its interests in Libya by renegade military commander Khalifa Haftar’s forces will have “grave consequences” after advances by the country’s Turkish-backed government.
The Libyan Interior Minister Fathi Bashagha said Thursday that Russia had sent at least eight warplanes to Khalifa Haftar.
A medical source announced that seven civilians were injured in shelling by the militias of warlord Khalifa Haftar on the Draybi area of Tripoli on Wednesday.
