Whether General Khalifa Haftar will this year enter Tripoli in triumph – which he continually predicted for most of last year – is in doubt now that Libya's future is in the hands of foreign powers especially Turkey and Russia...
For a few hours on 12 December and then the following day there was panic and eager expectation across Libya as the civil war between the internationally-recognised Government of National Accord (GNA) based in Tripoli and Libyan National Army (LNA) of eastern-based General Khalifa Haftar had reached a watershed moment...
The attempt by eastern-based General Khalifa Haftar and his Libyan National Army to seize Tripoli is now into its ninth month but is still unaccomplished (AC Vol 60 No 16 Proxies battle over Tripoli)...
He has thrown US weight behind plans for an international conference in Berlin later this month or early November to force foreign players in Libya – primarily Turkey Qatar Egypt the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Saudi Arabia – to stop providing Faiez el Serraj's Government of National Accord (GNA) and General Khalifa Haftar's Libyan National Army (LNA) with weapons and other material support fuelling the conflict...
On the face of it it is just another lucrative lobbying deal with Israeli arms dealer turned lobbyist Ari Ben Menashe bagging another US$1 million contract to add Tunisian media mogul and presidential hopeful Nabil Karoui to a client list that includes Libyan warlord Khalifa Haftar Congo-Brazzaville's President Denis Sassou-Nguesso and Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo aka Hemeti deputy leader of Sudan's Transitional Military Council (AC Vol 60 No 16 Lobbyist of last resort)...
The deaths were at Jufra Air Base in central Libya a key base for the now sluggish advance towards Tripoli of the Libyan National Army of General Khalifa Haftar and were part of the attacks and counter-attacks on both sides of armed drones...
As the campaign of Benghazi-based strongman Khalifa Haftar to take Tripoli slows down foreign powers are putting more and more resources into the fight including armed drones and psychological warfare tactics in social and mass media (AC Vol 60 No 8 Haftar stakes it all)...
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Under the terms of Hemeti's public relations contract with US lobbyist Ari Ben Menashe (see Pointer Lobbyist of last resort) he is said to have despatched a further 1 000 fighters to support General Khalifa Haftar's rebel forces based in eastern Libya...
Abu Dhabi and Cairo have provided Libyan strongman Khalifa Haftar with aircraft and other vital military support as his Libyan National Army (LNA) first took – and destroyed – Benghazi and then marched on Tripoli...
Ben-Menashe returned to Africa politics in late 2016 on a $6m retainer with Aguila Saleh Issa President of the Tobruk-based Libyan Parliament and chief ally of Libyan National Army leader General Khalifa Haftar (AC Vol 58 No 9 Finding Africa on K Street)...