AFP:
What's behind Haftar's refusal to sign Libya deal?
AFP
Military strongman Khalifa Haftar's reluctance to sign up to a Turkish-Russian orchestrated ceasefire accord underlines the complexity of Libya's conflict and pressures exerted by key foreign players, analysts say.
He left Moscow on Tuesday without signing a permanent truce aimed at ending nine months of fighting against the UN-recognised Government of National Accord (GNA) led by Fayez al-Sarraj.
His abrupt departure was a setback for an international diplomatic push, after Sarraj had signed up to halting Haftar's offensive to seize Tripoli from the GNA.
Read more at: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/whats-behind-haftars-refusal-to-sign-libya-deal/ar-BBYWTIv
This is interesting because they just had another peace conference in Moscow to no avail. See first story.
Germany to host Libya peace conference in Berlin on Sunday
German Chancellor Angela Merkel is inviting world powers to a summit in Berlin on Sunday to discuss efforts to broker peace in Libya
By The Associated Press
January 14, 2020
BERLIN -- German Chancellor Angela Merkel is inviting world powers to a summit in Berlin on Sunday to discuss efforts to broker peace in Libya.
Merkel's office said in a statement Tuesday that the German leader had decided to host the meeting after consulting with U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
Read more at: https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/germany-host-libya-peace-conference-berlin-sunday-68267810
Exclusive: 2,000 Syrian fighters deployed to Libya to support government
Anti-Turkish sentiment could grow after Ankara agrees to help fight against insurgency
Two thousand Syrian fighters have travelled from Turkey or will arrive imminently to fight on the battlefields of Libya, Syrian sources in all three countries have said, in an unprecedented development that threatens to further complicate the north African state’s intractable civil war.
The deployment came after Turkey agreed last month to come to the aid of the Libyan prime minister, Fayez al-Sarraj, who is backed by the UN, in the face of a months-long campaign by his rival, the warlord Khalifa Haftar.
Ankara has supported the Syrian opposition since the early days of the battle against the Syrian president, Bashar al-Assad, even as the original Free Syrian Army umbrella group grew weak and splintered because of infighting and the growth of Islamist elements within rebel ranks. Turkey now uses some rebel fighters as proxies against Kurdish-led forces despite allegations of human rights abuses from watchdogs.
Read more at: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jan/15/exclusive-2000-syrian-troops-deployed-to-libya-to-support-regime
To top off all of this, in the last 2 weeks, nearly a thousand migrants from Libya have been rescued at sea.
Migrant Agency Says Hundreds Are Fleeing Libya Fighting
The International Organization for Migration says almost 1,000 people trying to flee Libya for Europe have been picked up at sea in just two weeks.
By Associated Press, Wire Service Content Jan. 14, 2020
BRUSSELS (AP) — Almost 1,000 people trying to flee Libya by boat have been intercepted and returned to the conflict-ravaged country by its coast guard during the first two weeks of the new year, the International Organization for Migration said Tuesday.
The IOM said at least 953 migrants, including 136 women and 85 children, were plucked from the Mediterranean Sea and that many were returned to the Libyan capital of Tripoli.
They were picked up by the Libyan coast guard, which is trained and funded by the European Union, and one commercial vessel. All were then taken to detention centers, the agency said in a statement.
Read more at: https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2020-01-14/migrant-agency-says-hundreds-are-fleeing-libya-fighting
Maybe Merkel's idea of a peace conference can work, the other one didn't.
Lots of propaganda really, flying around. Seems a bit of a nonsensical war to me.
