On 12 July, the SLOR attacked the LNA’s Arandega checkpoint south of Tajerhi village, itself south of Qatroun, and west of al-Wigh airbase and its agricultural farm. The attack resulted in several LNA soldiers being killed and several more arrested. The SLOR attack was swift but although the SLOR initially claimed further advances towards al-Wigh airbase, it quickly retreated from Arandega checkpoint and the area. The retreat from Arangedga and the surrounding areas came just before the LNA MiG aircraft were preparing to take off.
The same day, the Government of National Stability (GNS) PM Osama Hammad extended his condolences to the LNA on ‘the martyrdom of a number of heroes of the armed forces who were martyred while performing their national duty in protecting and securing the borders of the homeland, following an attack carried out by lawless gangs.’
LNA Deputy Commander Saddam Haftar’s official Facebook page mourned the death of the LNA soldiers who died in the SLOR attack on Arandega checkpoint.
On 13 July, Saddam Haftar held an extensive meeting in the city of Sabha with commanders and heads of the Armed Forces’ bodies and staffs in the Southern Region to assess the combat readiness of all military units in the area. He also met with the Head of the Internal Security Agency, the Head of the Committee for the Reorganization of the South, and several security officials. Saddam said ‘our beloved South will remain an impenetrable stronghold, resilient against those who seek to sow chaos. We will not allow the security of citizens to be threatened, nor will the region become a haven for criminal gangs or outlaws’.