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Dbeibahs’ Residence in Libyan Capital Targeted with RPGs, No Casualties Reported

Head of Libya’s interim Government of National Unity (GNU) Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah. (Reuters file photo)
Head of Libya’s interim Government of National Unity (GNU) Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah. (Reuters file photo)
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Dbeibahs’ Residence in Libyan Capital Targeted with RPGs, No Casualties Reported

Head of Libya’s interim Government of National Unity (GNU) Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah. (Reuters file photo)
Head of Libya’s interim Government of National Unity (GNU) Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah. (Reuters file photo)

The residence of head of Libya’s interim Government of National Unity (GNU) Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah was targeted with rocket-propelled grenades on Sunday in an attack that left no casualties, a Libyan minister told Reuters.

The minister, who spoke on condition of anonymity, confirmed in a message that the attack only caused some damage. The minister has not disclosed any further details.

Two citizens said they had heard massive explosions near the sea in Tripoli's luxury Hay Andalus neighborhood, the home to Dbeibah's residence.

A citizen said that after the massive explosions were heard, heavy security forces with their vehicles were deployed around the area.

Libya has had little peace or stability since a 2011 NATO-backed uprising, and split in 2014 between eastern and western factions, with rival administrations governing each area.

The GNU was installed through a UN-backed process in 2021 but the parliament, in the east, stopped recognizing its legitimacy at the end of that year after a failed attempt to hold national elections, which led to prolonged political deadlock.

Early in March, three key leaders said they agreed on the "necessity" of forming a new unified government that would supervise long-delayed elections.

Dbeibah has vowed not to cede power to a new government without national elections.

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Italy Plans to Return Ambassador to Syria to Reflect New Diplomatic Developments, Minister Says

Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani speaks while meeting with members of the G7, on July 11, 2024, during the NATO summit in Washington. (AP)
Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani speaks while meeting with members of the G7, on July 11, 2024, during the NATO summit in Washington. (AP)
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Italy Plans to Return Ambassador to Syria to Reflect New Diplomatic Developments, Minister Says

Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani speaks while meeting with members of the G7, on July 11, 2024, during the NATO summit in Washington. (AP)
Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani speaks while meeting with members of the G7, on July 11, 2024, during the NATO summit in Washington. (AP)

Italy plans to send an ambassador back to Syria after a decade-long absence, the country’s foreign minister said, in a diplomatic move that could spark divisions among European Union allies.

Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, speaking in front of relevant parliamentary committees Thursday, announced Rome’s intention to re-establish diplomatic ties with Syria to prevent Russia from monopolizing diplomatic efforts in the Middle Eastern country.

Moscow is considered a key supporter of Syrian President Bashar Assad, who has remained in power despite widespread Western isolation and civilian casualties since the start of Syria’s civil war in March 2011.

Peaceful protests against the Assad government — part of the so-called “Arab Spring” popular uprisings that spread across some of the Middle East — were met by a brutal crackdown, and the uprising quickly spiraled into a full-blown civil war.

The conflict was further complicated by the intervention of foreign forces on all sides and a rising militancy, first by al-Qaida-linked groups and then the ISIS group until its defeat on the battlefield in 2019.

The war, which has killed nearly half a million people and displaced half the country’s pre-war population of 23 million, is now largely frozen, despite ongoing low-level fighting.

The country is effectively carved up into areas controlled by the Damascus-based government of Assad, various opposition groups and Syrian Kurdish forces.

In the early days of the conflict, many Western and Arab countries cut off relations with Syria, including Italy, which has since managed Syria-related diplomacy through its embassy in Beirut.

However, since Assad has regained control over most of the territory, neighboring Arab countries have gradually restored relations, with the most symbolically significant move coming last year when Syria was re-admitted to the Arab League.

Tajani said Thursday the EU’s policy in Syria should be adapted to the “development of the situation,” adding that Italy has received support from Austria, Croatia, Greece, the Czech Republic, Slovenia, Cyprus and Slovakia.

However, the US and allied countries in Europe have largely continued to hold firm in their stance against Assad’s government, due to concerns over human rights violations.