International actors

This week, British and Italian leaders contemplated the possibility of providing military support to the Government of National Accord (GNA), but have maintained that the conditions for an international intervention are not yet favourable. Italian Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni said that talks on providing assistance to the GNA would take place in Vienna (not Rome) on […]

During a Senate Armed Forces Committee hearing on 28 April, US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Joseph Dunford said the US has moved surveillance drones into Libyan airspace to gather intelligence and to prepare for the potential of additional airstrikes against ISIS.  At a press conference on 3 May, Dunford also said that US AFRICOM […]

UN Special Envoy Martin Kobler called for western forces to help combat ISIS in partnership with the Government of National Accord (GNA). Kobler said foreign powers should offer training and military support, combined with an end to the UN arms embargo. “The Daesh expansion can only be stopped militarily,” he said. “There is a consensus […]

British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond visited Tripoli on 18 April to meet with the Government of National Accord (GNA), pledging £10 million in support to help train Libyan state institutions. Hammond has also suggested that the UK would be ready to contribute to an international coalition to train the Libyan National Army. Speaking at the […]

Western countries’ statements and gestures of support for the Government of National Accord (GNA) Presidential Council continued to pour in throughout the week. Germany has pledged to provide the Presidency Council with €3 million in immediate aid to spend on “much-needed security infrastructure,” with a further €10 million ear marked for a stabilization fund to […]

On 1 April, the European Union imposed sanctions on three prominent Libyan politicians opposed to the installation of the UN-backed Government of National Accord (GNA). The three targets were Agilah Saleh, president of the House of Representatives (HoR), Khalifa Ghwell, prime minister of the General National Congress (GNC), and Nouri Abusahmen, president of the GNC.   […]

The Guardian reports that British Special Air Service (SAS) forces have been deployed in Libya since the beginning of the year. This information comes from a leaked memo detailing a confidential briefing given to US congressional leaders in January 2016 by Jordan’s King Abdullah. The memo indicates that US lawmakers were personally briefed about plans […]

The UK parliament’s foreign affairs select committee asked the government whether it intends to send 1,000 non-combat troops to Libya to train an army capable of driving ISIS from the country. Senior members of the committee said they were told in Tunis that the Italians would provide 5,000 troops and the UK 1,000, with more […]

In an Atlantic article from the April 2016 issue, US President Barack Obama hinted that America’s European and British partners have gravely disappointed in their support for Libya. Meanwhile last week’s comments by Italian Prime Minister Renzi against French ‘haste’ in 2011 have generated their fair share of scorn. The US, UK and EU called […]