On Friday, Sheikh Sadiq al-Ghariani, Grand Mufti of Libya, called on all the people of Libya to unite and fight against the Russians who came from Syria to the eastern regions of this country and fled after the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad's regime.
Mufti al-Ghariani claimed in his weekly program broadcast on Tanasuh TV that these Russians are not civilians but fighters who should be expelled from Libya. He confirmed that the Russians have significantly increased their presence in Libya since the beginning of December and are importing military equipment from there.
The Russians, who supported Assad in Syria for years, were welcomed in eastern Libya by the warlord, General Khalifa Haftar and his sons. They joined Russian mercenaries from Wagner's former group already established in Benghazi and Tobruk.
Credits to Wagner GroupAP/East News
Mufti, who officially interprets Muslim law in the Islamic tradition for the needs of state institutions and private individuals, said: “Libyans in the eastern, southern and western regions of the country should oppose their presence, take up arms and fight with them.”
A day earlier, on Thursday, the Prime Minister of the Government of National Accord, Abdulhamid Dubai, reacted to the presence of armed Russians in Libya. He said that he does not agree to the importation of any Russian military equipment or Russian troops from Syria, who are being fought by his government as foreigners, into his country. He also warned that “Libya will not be accepted as an international battlefield”.
The Russians are moving into Libya
After the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad's regime on December 8, Russia sent transport planes with air defense equipment from Syria to bases in eastern Libya, including S-400 and S-300 radar systems, weapons, personnel and other military equipment. .
Russians at Syriamil.ru
Haftar himself never explained this information. Russian mercenaries from the Wagner Group have been stationed in eastern Libya for years, and Russia is seeking permission to build Haftar's naval base in the port of Tobruk on the border with Egypt.
Earlier this week, CNN reported, citing unnamed American officials, that Russian warships are already moving from the Tartus base in Syria to Libya.
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Russian naval base in Tartus, Syria, Reuters
A country in chaos
Since the overthrow of dictator Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, Libya has been divided into two parts – the western part, ruled by the Government of National Accord from Tripoli, and the unofficial eastern part from Benghazi, ruled by Haftar. In February 2021 in Geneva, Libyan tribal and political leaders elected Dubai as the first prime minister of all Libya since 2014. He was supposed to lead the interim government until the parliamentary elections in December 2021, but it was canceled after a dispute between the warring parties.
Photo credit: AP/East News
