Libya’s three wars: Corona, “Irini” and Haftar

Rashid Khashana – In parallel with the slow spread of the Corona virus in Libya, the Government of National Accord found itself in the jaws of pincers, the first party being the European Union, which decided to pursue ships crossing the Mediterranean, whenever it became suspicious that they were transporting weapons to Libya. The second party is the military commander of the eastern region, General Khalifa Haftar, who is waging a fierce war on the outskirts of Tripoli to try to seize the capital. Today, a whole year has passed without the goal being achieved, which the war planners expected to be achieved in a few days. Between this and that, a third war was launched against the Covid-19 virus, albeit with some delay, and with very limited means, given the collapse of the already dilapidated basic health infrastructure. From this angle, the Libyans are considered the only people who bear the burden of three wars at the same time.

Humanitarian truce?

Although the United Nations Support Mission, the European Union, and other international parties issued calls to adhere to a “humanitarian truce,” the clashes continued at their intensity, and centered around the Al-Watiya Air Base (west) and the areas of Al-Assa, Al-Jameel, Riqdalin, and Zaltan, which the two conflicting parties took turns controlling, without a resolution. . In this context, Libyan figures, from various movements and sectors, recently called for postponing disputes until after the Covid-19 pandemic is overcome. The American ambassador to Libya, Richard Norland, participated in these pressures, who issued an appeal, through an “open letter” to the political and military leadership and the Libyan people, warning them of the “deadly threat” represented by the Covid-19 pandemic and calling on them to adhere to a truce. Norland was clear when he said that the best approach to embodying the humanitarian truce is “Field Marshal Haftar’s decision to suspend his campaign against Tripoli.” He focused in particular on the need for both parties to announce an immediate freeze on the deployment of foreign fighters, who are suspected of spreading more of the Covid-19 epidemic in Libya. But what prevents America and Europe from imposing a truce, when they have real pressure on both sides?

This duality constitutes another form of deceit that characterizes America and Europe’s dealings with the Libyan file. Norland’s call is not the first, and it will not be the last. At the end of last November, the ambassador accompanied a high-level American delegation to Haftar’s leadership headquarters, in the eastern region, before heading to Tripoli to meet with Fayez al-Sarraj. However, the Americans realize that being satisfied with statements and declarations of intent does not achieve the declared goal, especially since they acknowledge that the shortest path to consolidating the truce is Haftar’s initiative to stop his campaign against Tripoli, according to what was stated in one of Ambassador Norland’s official statements. Indeed, the Europeans are adding a tone to the chorus, by insisting on transforming the “Sofia” operation, which aims to monitor irregular migration from the southern Mediterranean, into a means of tightening the noose on the government, which enjoys international legitimacy, by preventing it from obtaining weapons.

From Sophia to “Irene”

While Haftar’s camp, through the director of the media center of its operations room, Khaled al-Mahjoub, supported the launch of Operation “Irini,” considering it “important for Libyan and international national security,” the “reconciliation” government strongly opposed it. The operation, which replaced Operation “Sofia,” aims to prevent the sending of weapons to Libya and pursue human traffickers, after “Sofia” was limited to maritime monitoring of irregular migration operations. Accordingly, it has become clear that it is targeting ships that may carry weapons to the ports of Tripoli and Misrata, while Haftar’s forces continue to receive many times more than what the internationally recognized government receives, across the land border with Egypt, and also via military cargo planes. However, the two sides of the military balance are still close, as evidenced by the fact that no one has been able to resolve the war in their favor so far. Each of the two teams used to announce its seizure of strategic sites, such as the international airport, Ain Zara, and Qarabulli, and the other team would then announce that it had regained them.

European disputes

It does not seem that the Europeans have made up their minds regarding Operation “Irini,” as the spokesman for the High Representative for Security and Foreign Policy in the European Union, Josep Borrell, confirmed that consultations are still ongoing among member states to determine their contributions to the operation. European Union spokesman Peter Stano also indicated the formation of a working group seeking to finalize the mission, especially the contributions of countries to it and its operating mechanisms. It is likely that the issue will raise more disagreements among members, after the divisions created by each country’s individual response to the complications of the war on the Covid-19 pandemic.

Meanwhile, the war continues as a debate continues between the two Libyan rivals, while the “reconciliation” government faces a different kind of war with the Corona virus, which has paralyzed life in several Libyan regions and cities. Libya is, along with Syria, the only countries where the war death toll exceeds the number of deaths from the virus.

Four Americans

Moreover, two members of the US Senate, Senator Chris Coons and Senator Chris Murphy, asked Al-Sarraj, Haftar, their foreign supporters, and the international community to implement an immediate ceasefire in the entire Libyan territory, with comprehensive respect for the arms embargo imposed by the United Nations on Libya. Last October, four members of the US Congress, including Coons and Murphy, submitted a draft law entitled “Achieving stability in Libya.” The goal of the project was to clarify the United States’ approach to dealing with the Libyan crisis, and to give impetus to the political solution, but this draft law remained a trend in the Valley, especially after Haftar used the oil weapon to dry up the springs of financial revenues, in order to incapacitate the “reconciliation” government.

Despite the urgent measures taken by “Al-Wefaq” and the parallel government in Al-Bayda (east) to contain the epidemic, the hernia is wider than the area can repair, as the deterioration of the health infrastructure hinders the estimation of the true number of infections, and by extension limits the chances of combating the pandemic and eliminating it. on her. The World Health Organization was correct when it attributed the small number of infections recorded in Libya to weak surveillance systems and the nature of the virus, which sometimes causes a mild illness from which the infected person recovers, without realizing that he was infected. Since the Gaddafi era, the health system in Libya has complained of poor infrastructure, which has made capable citizens travel to Tunisia, Jordan, or Turkey for treatment, and they do not trust the dilapidated local hospitals. Accordingly, after acquiring advanced means of monitoring infections, experts expect an increase in the observed cases of infection.

Rolling towards crisis

After it was believed that Libya was free of infections, the authorities in the west and east of the country began announcing the discovery of new infections day after day, at a time when efforts accelerated to prepare hospitals and prepare quarantine places. The first aid came from China, and not from the countries considered involved in the Libyan crisis, including Russia, France, Turkey, and the UAE. At the forefront of those at risk of injury are those displaced from their areas, due to the battles taking place in the vicinity of Tripoli and other cities. Their number is estimated at more than 150,000 displaced people, who are currently living in schools and shelters that are not prepared for housing, because they lack the basics.

The Libyan authorities need great financial capabilities to contain the pandemic, but the latter came at the wrong time, as the country’s revenues from oil and gas exports have not collapsed as they have these weeks. National Oil Corporation statistics indicate that its loss approached $4 billion, due to the decline in revenues after Khalifa Haftar’s forces took control of the oil fields and ports last January. The head of the institution, Mustafa Sanalla, warned that the Libyan economy is sliding towards a real crisis. Hospitals, institutes and other public facilities are suffering from a lack of electricity and fuel, according to a statement made by Sanalla to the Libyan Herald newspaper. Expert Olivier De Sousse explained that the decline in the local production of oil and gas disrupts the supply of power plants with the necessary energy, which negatively affects vital facilities such as hospitals. De Sousse stressed that the lack of oil revenues eliminates opportunities to use them to purchase medicines, masks and medical equipment, as part of a national plan to combat the Corona pandemic. In the city of Sebha, the capital of the Fezzan Province (south), where the state does not exist, the municipality distributed cooking gas to citizens, through consumer associations, at a rate of 3,000 cylinders per week, at a price of 30 dinars ($20) per cylinder.

Difficult task

It is noteworthy that municipal councils have taken several initiatives, amid the paralysis of state institutions, to form emergency committees and allocate places prepared to receive quarantined people, in addition to forming teams to carry out spraying and sterilization work. The most difficult of these tasks is convincing people to isolate themselves inside their homes to avoid infection, and forcing those who rebel to adhere to discipline, by implementing a curfew, in addition to monitoring food and medicine. Although the Government of National Accord is busy fighting Haftar’s forces on the outskirts of Tripoli, and the latter has been unable to invade the city so far, it must, at the same time, contain the Covid-19 attack and prevent its spread throughout the rest of Libya, given that these two wars are a priority. Between the three wars, at the current stage.

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