On 8 October, the Government of National Accord (GNA) Defence Minister, Saleh al-deen al-Namroush, reportedly warned that Libyan National Army (LNA) Commander Khalifa Haftar was preparing to launch an attack in the Bani Walid, Ghariyan and Tarhouna regions. Namroush instructed the general staff, regional commands and western region joint operations department to prepare to repel the attack. The following day, LNA spokesperson Ahmed Mismari denied any planned attack, in response to which Namroush issued a second statement confirming the accuracy of the GNA’s intelligence.
Claims by the LNA have also emerged that the GNA is planning to launch an attack on the western oil fields and facilities of Sharara and al-Feel. On 9 October, the LNA-aligned 128, 628 and Khalid Bin Walid Battalions were sent to reinforce LNA and the Petroleum Facilities Guard (PFG) at Sharara and al-Feel.