Results for "Petroleum Facilities Guard (PFG)"

On 25 June, the LNA spokesperson Ahmed al-Mismari stated that Khalifa Haftar had ordered that the all ports ‘liberated’ from Ibrahim Jadhran forces on 21 June by the LNA were to be handed over to the Benghazi-based National Oil Corporation, under the auspices of the Bayda-based parallel (interim) government led by Abdullah al-Thinni.

On 11 September, General Khalifa Haftar’s Libyan National Army (LNA) announced and launched a secretive military operation named Sudden Lightening, and by 12 September the LNA had taken full military control of the Oil Crescent. Ras Lanuf, Sidra and Zuetina oil ports were wrested away from Ibrahim Jadhran’s Petroleum Facilities Guard (PFG), and are now under control of the House of Representatives-aligned (HoR) LNA.

At the moment of partial victory in Sirte, various pillars that should make up the anti-ISIS coalition are feuding with each other. The House of Representatives (HoR) has rejected the Government of National Accord, while the Libyan National Army (LNA) and Petroleum Facilities Guard (PFG) are facing increasing tension over Zuetina in the oil crescent, and various interests are preventing oil production in order to seek their own demands.

The Misratan-led Bunyan Marsus anti-ISIS campaign in Sirte suffered setbacks on 15 July when at least 20 men were killed in multiple suicide attacks by ISIS militants… Security threats in the oil crescent are dramatically increasing, with higher prospects of a larger conflict in the short-medium term. On 17 July, fighting broke out between Libyan National Army (LNA) units, supported by local volunteers, and Benghazi Defense Brigade (BDB) in the town of Magrun, only 70 kilometers southwest of Benghazi… The BDB’s momentum is intensifying rifts in the region, especially between the LNA and the Petroleum Facilities Guard (PFG) commanded by Ibrahim Jadhran.

Three key developments were identified last week: 1) The unabated momentum of the Government of National Accord’s (GNA) Bunyan Marsus coalition against ISIS in Sirte, 2) the Libyan National Army’s (LNA) surge eradicated the remaining pockets of jihadi fighters in southwestern Benghazi and 3) and the influence of the Petroleum Facilities Guard (PFG) in the oil crescent has taken a significant hit.

In the coming weeks, Libya’s oil crescent is likely to witness increased tension between three actors: the Libyan National Army (LNA), the Government of National Accord-aligned Petroleum Facilities Guard (PFG), and renegade Islamist militias… The reversal of military momentum once more in favour of the LNA, coupled with the Islamist subversion of the GNA’s anti-ISIS, efforts is bolstering the political position of Haftar and anti-GNA factions… After several Islamist militias broke away from the GNA’s Bunyan Marsus coalition and attacked Ajdabiya on 18 June, the GNA’s political position in the oil crescent was severely compromised, and with it the standing of PFG forces loyal to Ibrahim Jadhran… Meanwhile, the GNA is still holed up in Abu Setta naval base, while other militias affiliated to Islamist forces have a freer hand in the Tripoli.

The political damage to the Government of National Accord (GNA), following the attack on Ajdabiya on 18 June by Islamist militias, may undo fragile militia alliances in Tripoli and key towns in western Libya. Meanwhile, an escalation of open conflict between the Libyan National Army (LNA) and Islamist militias from western Libya is now very likely, and could potentially spill over into a broader tribal/regional conflict involving the LNA and the Petroleum Facilities Guard (PFG).

The Government of National Accord’s (GNA) establishment of the Adjabiya-Sirte operations room to coordinate the anti-ISIS campaign from the east, and de-facto reinstatement of Ibrahim Jadhran as head of the Petroleum Facilities Guard (PFG) in the central region, in tandem with the PFG attack on ISIS in Libya’s oil crescent, signals that a deal has been made between the GNA and local actors in the oil crescent that circumvents Khalifa Haftar’s Libyan National Army (LNA). While this dynamic effectively puts the GNA in a firm position to negotiate workable, yet temporary, alliances with rival militias to focus on the fight against ISIS, it threatens to expose the GNA to hijacking by groups that are not under its direct control, and who have no other overlapping interests than the defeat of ISIS in Sirte.

On 8 October, the GNA Defence Minister, al-Namroush, warned that LNA Commander Haftar was preparing to launch an attack in the Bani Walid, Ghariyan and Tarhouna regions. 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 3 June, GNA Prime Minister al-Serraj announced the complete liberation of Tripoli. On 5 June, GNA forces entered Tarhouna and Bani Walid. On 6 June, the GNA Sirte-Jufra Operations Room declared Operation “Paths of Victory” to capture Sirte and Jufra. On 9 June, the NOC proclaimed that LNA affiliated forces had entered the Sharara field and interrupted operations.

On 13 June, the NOC released a statement expressing its concern over “an increased military presence” at its Ras Lanuf oil terminal. On 14 June, the RASCO chairman issued a statement denying the NOC’s claims. On 16 June, the GNA Prime Minister, Fayez al-Serraj, announced a new peace plan initiative, under the auspices of the UN.

On 26 July, the first unofficial joint patrol between the Libyan National Army’s (LNA) 128 brigade and the Sirte Protection Force (SPF) was conducted along the Sirte-Jufra road. This region has seen multiple reports of recent of ISIS activity.

The anti-ISIS coalition, such as exists, is in a state of flux after Haftar’s seizure of the oil ports. Misratan officials have said that they will not go to war against the LNA to support Jadhran, however after Haftar’s forces succeeded in repelling a counter attack against the Sidra and Ras Lanuf ports, they pushed to within 50km of Sirte where Misrata are currently battling ISIS.

The political process in Libya is headed towards a new stage of dysfunction. The Presidential Council (PC) has not yet agreed a new ministerial list for the Government of National Accord (GNA), and fresh divisions are emerging within the House of Representatives (HoR).

On 6 July, the Libyan National Army (LNA) suffered major blows, with the death of 11 soldiers in a suicide attack, and downing of its ace Mig-23 pilot Major Idris Hamed Al-Obeidi. Obeidi, an iconic LNA fighter pilot, was killed when his plane crashed during a mission against jihadists in Ganfuda. On 10 July, Tariq Al Saiti, another iconic LNA solider who specialized in de-mining and was a highly respected figure in Benghazi, was killed. These setbacks have dampened the high hopes for a swift and decisive defeat of jihadists in eastern Libya.

The sudden ISIS withdrawal from Derna on 20 April, and the lack of combat between ISIS convoys and LNA, has revived suspicions among Derna Mujahedeen Shura Council (DMSC) supporters that the LNA and ISIS are collaborating. Furthermore, the civilian casualties resulting from five consecutive days of LNA airstrikes against DMSC positions in Derna have enflamed […]

The Petroleum Facilities Guard (PFG) attacked an ISIS convoy en-route to Bin Jawwad on 16 April, killing ISIS senior commander Abu Hamza Al Jazairi. Al Jazairi is said to have lead ISIS missions in Bin Jawwad and Ras Lanuf. Three other ISIS militants, two Algerians and one Tunisian, were injured in the attack, as the […]

The recent controversy surrounding Haftar, combined with international media reports of an imminent western intervention, is threatening to weaken and complicate local anti-ISIS coalitions, in both Eastern and Western regions of Libya. In Eastern Libya, a number of tribes, including the Magherba and Drissi tribes (Hijazi’s tribe), are beginning to question the structure and leadership […]

In Sabratha, after the latest explosion destroying the old intelligence building in the city, the council issued a strong statement and began taking urgent steps to mitigate the threat, implementing a state of emergency throughout the city, establishing a joint operations room, setting up barricades and checkpoints and beginning a registration of all foreigners throughout the city…. IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO SEE A PHOTO COLLAGE OF ISLAMIC STATE ACTIONS AND VISUAL MATERIAL FROM THE PAST WEEK, CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THIS SAFE ZIPFILE.

Intense fighting in Benghazi and tension within and between factions in Derna and the oil crescent.

Members of the Petroleum Facilities Guard joined Special Forces in Benghazi marking their first foray into direct combat as Islamist forces launched a counterattack against Dignity forces in the city.

On 20 December, the National Oil Corporation (NOC) confirmed that production from Sharara, al-Feel, Hamada and Wafa oil fields had been shut down by...

Over the last week, the LNA maintained its aerial dominance over Tripoli, while the GNA did not launch any aerial attacks. The LNA also launched air attacks on Tripoli’s western and southern periphery. On 27 November, a contingent of the loosely GNA aligned SPF and the local GNA-aligned PFG unit launched a coordinated attack on the al-Feel oilfield. On 28 November, the NOC confirmed that following the cessation of military activity at the al-Feel oil field, production had resumed.

On 10 July, Khalifa Haftar ordered all LNA-affiliated Petroleum Facilities Guards to allow oil ports under their control to resume exports under the authority of the Tripoli-based NOC and its subsidiaries. On 11 July, the NOC lifted force majeure on all of the Oil Crescent ports and Tobruq’s Hariga port.

The LNA defeated a counter-attack on the oil crescent launched from Jufra by allied forces including Jadhran loyalists, BDB fighters and some GNA forces. The attacking convoy was routed and the LNA even extended its control south of Jufra, all the way to Brak al-Shati. In Tripoli, tensions are high as anti-GNA Misratan forces mobilize to support the anti-GNA Islamist coalition, while protests took place after a video of militiamen raping a woman was released.