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Haftar Rejects Sarraj Proposal for Military, Security Coordination

LNA commander Khalifa Haftar. (AFP)
LNA commander Khalifa Haftar. (AFP)
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Haftar Rejects Sarraj Proposal for Military, Security Coordination

LNA commander Khalifa Haftar. (AFP)
LNA commander Khalifa Haftar. (AFP)

Khalifa Haftar’s Libyan National Army (LNA) rejected a proposal by Government of National Accord chief Fayez al-Sarraj to establish military and security coordination between them to combat terrorism.

LNA spokesman Ahmed al-Mismari stated that disputes with the GNA still stand due to Sarraj’s insistence on considering himself high commander of the Libyan army.

Haftar refuses to be affiliated to an illegitimate government, he said.

Sarraj had made an indirect proposal for military and security coordination with the LNA during the GNA’s commemoration of the eighth anniversary of Libya’s 2011 popular revolt that toppled the regime of longtime ruler Moammar al-Gaddafi.

The GNA said that it rejects the exploitation of the war on terrorism to advance political agendas.

There can be no military solution to the crisis, it stressed, while confirming its commitment to holding elections in the country.

“The overwhelming majority of the people want to hold elections and all sides must yield to the will of the people,” it declared.

Meanwhile, Mismari said that uniting the military institution in Libya according to Egyptian-sponsored negotiations will fail because of the lack of disciplined military forces that adhere to Tripoli.

The capital is instead controlled by militias, he noted.

Moreover, he stressed that the LNA will continue its mission to liberate the remaining cities of the South from the clutches of terrorist groups and Chadian gangs.

The LNA is seeking to secure Libya’s borders with neighboring countries of Niger, Algeria and Chad, he stated.

Marking the eighth anniversary of the revolt, the US embassy in Libya tweeted: “The United States reaffirms its commitment to stand with all Libyans who are working to achieve a more secure and prosperous future in Libya.”

British Ambassador to Libya Frank Baker tweeted that the Libyan people must unite on the occasion in order to achieve their country’s stability and prosperity.

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Arab World

MSF Suspends Operations at Key Hospital in Sudan's Capital

FILE - South Sudanese people sit outside a nutrition clinic at a transit center in Renk, South Sudan, on May 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Sam Mednick, File)
FILE - South Sudanese people sit outside a nutrition clinic at a transit center in Renk, South Sudan, on May 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Sam Mednick, File)
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MSF Suspends Operations at Key Hospital in Sudan's Capital

FILE - South Sudanese people sit outside a nutrition clinic at a transit center in Renk, South Sudan, on May 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Sam Mednick, File)
FILE - South Sudanese people sit outside a nutrition clinic at a transit center in Renk, South Sudan, on May 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Sam Mednick, File)

Medical aid agency MSF said on Friday it has been forced to suspend its activities at one of the few remaining hospitals in southern Khartoum due to repeated attacks, cutting off yet another lifeline for those who remain in the Sudanese capital.
War has been raging in Sudan since April 2023, sparked by a power struggle between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) ahead of a planned transition to civilian rule, triggering the world's largest displacement and hunger crisis.
The hospital, which lies in territory controlled by the RSF, helped treat the victims of frequent airstrikes by the Sudanese Armed Forces, as well as hundreds of malnourished women and children in an area where two neighborhoods have been judged at risk of famine, reported Reuters.
"In the 20 months MSF teams have worked alongside hospital staff and volunteers, Bashair Hospital has experienced repeated incidents of armed fighters entering the hospital with weapons and threatening medical staff, often demanding fighters be treated before other patients," MSF said in a statement.
"Despite extensive engagements with all stakeholders, these attacks have continued in recent months. MSF has now taken the very difficult decision to suspend all medical activities in the hospital."
The fighting in Sudan has cut off up to 80% of hospitals in conflict areas, where millions who cannot afford to escape the violence remain. Civilians face frequent air and artillery fire and hunger as supplies are blocked by both warring parties and prices skyrocket.
Medical facilities, including MSF-supported ones that have suspended operations, have frequently come under attack by RSF soldiers demanding treatment or looting supplies. Bashair Hospital has served more than 25,000 people, MSF said, including 9,000 hurt by blasts, gunshot wounds, and other violence.
"Sometimes dozens of people arrived at the hospital at the same time after shelling or airstrikes on residential areas and markets," MSF said in the statement, citing an incident on Sunday where an airstrike one kilometer away drove 50 people to the emergency room, 12 of them already dead.