Libya: LNA Says in Control of Southern Border Areas

LNA leader Khalifa Haftar. Reuters file photo
LNA leader Khalifa Haftar. Reuters file photo
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Libya: LNA Says in Control of Southern Border Areas

LNA leader Khalifa Haftar. Reuters file photo
LNA leader Khalifa Haftar. Reuters file photo

The Libyan National Army led by Khalifa Haftar is now in control of border areas with Algeria, Chad and Niger as part of its operation to clear southern Libyan territories from terrorists and criminals, the LNA announced on Friday.

Members of LNA's Tariq Bin Ziad battalion said their forces have gained full control of the joint border areas with Algeria, Chad and Niger after the escape of members of the Chadian opposition.

The LNA media office said the army entered the area of Umm al-Araneb amid a huge welcome by the area’s residents.

LNA’s major gains this week came after weeks of advances as part of a campaign to secure the country’s lawless south.

Meanwhile, Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte thanked the United Arab Emirates after the head of Libya’s Government of National Accord, Fayez al-Sarraj, and Haftar agreed in UN-brokered talks in Abu Dhabi to reform Libya's constitution and hold national elections.

“There can’t be any progress in Libya unless the two sides reach an agreement,” Conte said.

Italian Interior Minister Matteo Salvini, who met his Libyan counterpart Fathi Bashaga in Rome, also said that there should not be any interference on setting the date for the elections.



Oxfam Says 80% of Gaza’s Water Infrastructure Is Damaged

Palestinians gather among the rubble of buildings destroyed during the Israeli offensive, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, at Jabalia refugee camp, northern Gaza Strip, February 17, 2025. (Reuters)
Palestinians gather among the rubble of buildings destroyed during the Israeli offensive, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, at Jabalia refugee camp, northern Gaza Strip, February 17, 2025. (Reuters)
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Oxfam Says 80% of Gaza’s Water Infrastructure Is Damaged

Palestinians gather among the rubble of buildings destroyed during the Israeli offensive, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, at Jabalia refugee camp, northern Gaza Strip, February 17, 2025. (Reuters)
Palestinians gather among the rubble of buildings destroyed during the Israeli offensive, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, at Jabalia refugee camp, northern Gaza Strip, February 17, 2025. (Reuters)

The international charity Oxfam says 80% of water and sanitation networks in the Gaza Strip have been damaged or destroyed in the Israel-Hamas war.

The damaged networks, including all six major wastewater treatment plants, have accelerated the spread of water-borne disease as hundreds of thousands of people shelter in tent camps, Oxfam said.

In a report this week, the World Bank estimated it would cost over $50 billion to rebuild Gaza. That’s well over twice the total Palestinian economic output in 2022.

With the future of the ceasefire in doubt, and Israel and Egypt maintaining a blockade of Gaza, it is unclear when or how anything will be rebuilt.