[News] Reasons for withdrawing from Tripoli.. Haftar reveals new details

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The commander of the Libyan National Army, Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, revealed for the first time exciting details about the battle of Tripoli, stressing that the withdrawal from the vicinity of the Libyan capital was a sovereign decision to confront a conspiracy that was targeting oil ports.

In an interview with the Libyan newspaper "Akhbar Al-Hadath", Haftar said that the withdrawal was taken after it became clear that a plot to occupy the ports and oil fields was taken, and the decision to withdraw was to secure the wealth of the Libyan people.

He added, "The enemy forces backed by regional powers were going to land in the areas of ports and oil fields, so it was to protect our back lines and areas and these areas."

Field Marshal Haftar continued, "We did not regret not using excessive force to storm the capital in order to preserve the lives and property of our people."

In 2019, the Libyan National Army launched an operation to regain control of the Libyan capital and expel the militias from it, before, after months of battles, it announced its withdrawal from the vicinity of Tripoli.

The former Government of National Accord, led by Fayez al-Sarraj, backed by the militias, announced on June 6, 2020, its control over the entire administrative borders of the capital, including Tripoli International Airport, after great support from Turkey with Syrian mercenaries, military experts and equipment, most notably drones.

The commander of the Libyan National Army comments on this by saying: “The militias and terrorists are deluding themselves of a false victory over the armed forces, and the hour of shocking truth will come for them one day soon.”

Turkey does not hide its ambitions in Libyan oil, and harnesses all its capabilities to obtain it, whether in the sea or on land fields. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan revealed his true goals for intervention in Libya when he spoke about the “sensitivity” of the process of controlling the city of Sirte and its surroundings due to the presence of gas wells. and oil.

The US condition regarding Russia

Field Marshal Haftar also revealed the role of the US military command in Africa, called "AFRICOM", in supporting the Tripoli militias in battles against the national army.

He said, "Africom forces were the ones that targeted our forces at Al-Wattia Air Base and in a number of Tripoli axes."

On the reason behind this, Haftar said, "The Americans asked the General Command of the Armed Forces to disengage from the Russian ally, and when we asked them for an alternative, they disavowed and unleashed Turkey, AFRICOM, and NATO techniques to target our forces."

In June 2020, a delegation from the US Africa Command called for a strategic ceasefire in Libya.

And the American intervention to support the Government of National Accord took place months before this, as the Libyan army spokesman, Major General Ahmed Al-Mismari, announced, with the start of the battles in April 2019, during a press conference that the Libyan National Army forces near Tripoli were surprised by the presence of American forces on the ground: “We were surprised by the presence of 300 American soldiers in full their advanced weapons and equipment.

 

"We responded to the advice of friends"

The commander of the Libyan National Army added that the Libyan Arab Armed Forces listened to their friends in stressing the political solution and going to elections in accordance with the outcomes of the Geneva talks.

He added, "We came down to the desire of friends and allies, and we will go to the political solution until the end set in the road map, which is the elections."

On June 20, 2020, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi stressed that “Sirte and Al-Jafra are a red line,” stressing that “Libya will only be defended by its people, and we will help them in that.” At the same time, he called for preserving the current status quo in Libya without changing it. , and immediately start political negotiations to end the crisis.

The option of war is there

However, Haftar pointed out that the option of war exists if the political solution fails and the outcomes of the "Berlin 2" conference that was held last month and ended with the necessity of holding presidential and parliamentary elections on December 24th fails.

Addressing his speech to the Libyans, the army chief said: "If we do not reach a solution, your armed forces are ready once again to liberate the capital from militias and criminals," stressing that Libya's unity, the integrity of its territory, and the exit of the occupier are red lines that should not be neglected.

This came a few hours before the international mission to Libya announced the failure of the round of talks of the Libyan Political Dialogue Forum, which was held Friday in Geneva, to reach consensus on a constitutional basis for holding the next elections in the country on schedule.

Residen Zeninga, Assistant Secretary-General and Coordinator of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya declared the failure of the round of talks, saying: “The Libyan people will surely feel let down, as they still yearn for the opportunity to exercise their democratic right in the presidential and parliamentary elections on December 24.”

Sky News Arabia learned from sources inside the forum that major disagreements erupted over the past two days over proposals regarding the constitutional rule.

The first proposal is to hold simultaneous presidential and parliamentary elections in December on a temporary constitutional basis, while the second proposal is to hold parliamentary elections on a temporary constitutional basis and postpone the presidential elections after the approval of a permanent constitution, and the third is to hold presidential and parliamentary elections after approving the amended constitution according to the draft constitution during the phase Preliminary, and no agreement on any of them.