Nov. 23 – Unidentified armed men unsuccessfully try to storm the NOC’s HQ in Tripoli before being dispersed by PFG sentries and reinforcements.
Nov. 28 – Three LNA battalions launched a massive military operation in the southern city of Ubari, reportedly arresting several AQIM associates. A woman died and a child was badly wounded during the clashes.
Nov. 23-28 – After meeting in Tangier, Morocco, a joint delegation of HoR members from Tripoli and Tobruk vowed to unite Libya’s legislative body and scheduled another full-quorum, joint meeting in Ghadames for Dec. 2.
At the international level, Turkey keeps sending military equipment to Libya, especially the Al-Watiya airbase, via an uninterrupted air bridge between the two countries. A large detachment of Turkish Air Force personnel seems to have been deployed permanently in Al-Watiya.
AL-WATIYA
- On November 27, air traffic website Radar 24 showed an air bridge between Turkey and the Al-Watiya Air Base in western Libya, with three Turkish Air Force A400 flying back and forth between the two countries. In conjunction with this military build-up by the Turkish forces and the Syrian and foreign mercenaries in Libya, social media accounts close to the Turkish military published an air force embroidered patch reportedly belonging to the Turkish troops stationed in western Libya.
BENGHAZI
- On November 23, the GNA reported about large LNA forces moving towards Sirte, some 450 km E of Tripoli, possibly in a show of force by Haftar to boost his own image as political and military leader. The GNA maintained that live ammunition was used during military exercises, and confirmed that LNA forces include fighters of several nationalities.
MISRATA – TRIPOLI
- on November 26, Italian air tracking website Itamilradar detected at least two Turkish military airlifts to Libya, one from Kayseri to western Libya and one from Konya probably to Misrata. On the same day, Flightradar24, another air tracking website, reported that an allegedly GNA-owned Falcon X900 had taken off from Tripoli’s Mitiga Airport bound for Turkey.
TARHOUNA
- on November 23, Libya’s General Authority for Search and Identification of Missing Persons announced that yet another mass grave had been found in the Al-Dawaim area in Tarhouna, S of Tripoli. Two bodies were retrieved on the first day, but the number of bodies is expected to increase as excavations continue.
TRIPOLI
- on November 25, a USAF Boeing RC-135U (64-14849) reportedly took off from Crete, Greece for a surveillance mission off the western coasts of Libya. Around 12:00 CET, the aircraft disappeared from radar screens;
- on November 23 around noon, an unidentified armed group attempted to storm the National Oil Corporation headquarters in Tripoli, taking the Petroleum Facilities Guard sentinels by surprise. Reinforcements from the Defence Ministry and Interior Ministry helped to prevent the armed group from breaking into the facility. Nobody was hurt, NOC confirmed. The corporation claimed one of its “senior officials” had received threats earlier that morning, which might be related to the attack. The following day, the U.S. Embassy renewed its support to NOC ‘‘as it fulfils its apolitical and technocratic mandate on behalf of all Libyans’’.
UBARI
- on November 28, a woman was killed and a child badly wounded in the southern town of Ubari, as LNA’s 128th Battalion, 116th Battalion, and the “Tariq bin Ziyad” Battalion stormed the Sharib neighbourhood, detaining several residents and retrieving arms and other materials. The following day, GNA Army spokesman Mohammed Gununu scolded Haftar’s forces for their brutality and expressed disappointment at UNSMIL’s “silence” on Haftar forces violating the ceasefire. The LNA retorted the military intervention in Ubari had targeted a number of AQIM terrorists who were eventually arrested. Well-informed sources maintain the now dismantled AQIM cell had remained dormant until former AQIM leader, Abd al-Malik Droukdel was killed, and had assembled in Ubari ahead of planning new attacks in Libya, Northern Mali, Chad, and southern Algeria.
INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
- on November 29, the Turkish Defence Ministry announced 2,301 Libyan soldiers had completed their training and 264 others were still being trained by the Turkish military, as part of Turkey’s multi-level support to the GNA;
- speaking during the 9th edition of SHADE MED on November 29, UNSMIL acting head Stephanie Williams praised the “fundamental role” that EU’s Operation IRINI had played in implementing the UN’s arms embargo on Libya;
- on November 27, US Ambassador to Libya, Richard Norland said his country will be taking actions against any “bad actors” undermining peace and stability in Libya, and obstructing the ongoing reunification process;
- In a speech on November 27 during the Migration Board at the Mediterranean Forum 2020, Malta’s Foreign Minister, Evarist Bartolo revealed that 2,256 migrants had arrived in Malta since the beginning of 2020, saying that without “good relations and strong cooperation with Libya, some 7,000 others who were intercepted” would have reached the island country;
- In a pre-recorded video message to the Italian Mediterranean Dialogue Forum on November 26, EU High Representative for Security and Foreign Policy, Josep Borrell stated Operation Irini was instrumental in securing a sustainable solution to the conflict in Libya within the framework of the UN-led Berlin process;
- Addressing Libyan Political Dialogue Forum delegates on November 25, Stephanie Williams stressed the need to address the fragile situation in Libya and work on all tracks to tackle the crisis. Williams lauded “the remarkable improvement” achieved in the military track that had led to a ceasefire;
- On the opening day of MED 2020 online conference on November 25, Italian Foreign Minister, Luigi Di Maio called on the international community to stop foreign interference in the Libyan crisis, noting that Turkey’s unilateral actions in the Eastern Mediterranean had been affecting the situation in Libya, including violations on the arms embargo on Libya;
- On November 25, the US Treasury blacklisted the pro-haftar Al-Kaniyat militia and its leader, Mohammed al-Kani under the Global Magnitsky Act for the murder of civilians in Tarhouna, as well as torture, kidnappings, and displacement of civilians.;
- On November 23, members of Libya’s split House of Representatives (HoR) from both Tripoli and Tobruk met for a semi-official consultative meeting in Tangiers, Morocco, and agreed on November 28 that the future HoR HQ would be in Benghazi. The MPs decided to meet again in Ghadames on December 2 to discuss unifying the country’s legislative body;
- on November 24, HoR Speaker, Aguila Saleh arrived in Moscow at the invitation of the Russian government, and first met with Russia’s Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov, who stated the firm stance of both PM Al-Sarraj and Saleh himself last August played an important role in restarting the political process. Lavrov added Russia is interested in resuming full bilateral cooperation with Libya. Saleh expressed hope that general elections would be held in Libya by the end of 2021 as planned, stressing the need for consensus among the adversaries so as to ensure stability in areas under their separate control;
- In a November 23 joint statement, the governments of France, Italy, Germany, and the United Kingdom warned anyone standing in the way of political negotiations and of the peace process in Libya, and expressed their support to the widespread resumption of oil production in Libya and reforming security for the oil installations.
