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Libya: Clashes Erupt South of Tripoli Violating Ceasefire Deal

Smoke rises during heavy clashes between rival factions in Tripoli, Libya (File photo: Reuters)
Smoke rises during heavy clashes between rival factions in Tripoli, Libya (File photo: Reuters)
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Libya: Clashes Erupt South of Tripoli Violating Ceasefire Deal

Smoke rises during heavy clashes between rival factions in Tripoli, Libya (File photo: Reuters)
Smoke rises during heavy clashes between rival factions in Tripoli, Libya (File photo: Reuters)

Heavy clashes erupted Thursday in the Libyan capital violating the ceasefire deal, only to subside on Friday morning amid reports on the mobilization of troops of Libyan National Army (LNA) led by Khalifa Haftar and forces loyal to Government of National Accord (GNA) headed by Fayez al-Sarraj.

LNA advanced towards Tripoli as GNA forces retreated, a high-ranking military official told Asharq Al-Awsat in a brief statement.

The official, who asked to remain anonymous, said that the army forces managed during the past two days to thwart militia defenses in several areas of the capital, especially in its southern suburbs, but declined to reveal more details.

Heavy clashes erupted between the forces of the two parties near the diplomatic club in Ain Zara axis in southern Tripoli.

Two top officials of forces loyal to GNA stated they monitored LNA forces mobilizing in the areas of Qasr bin Ghashir, Tarhunah, and Sorman, adding that they transported artillery from al-Jafra airbase towards Tripoli.

Volcano of Rage Operation, launched by militias loyal to the GNA, indicated that LNA forces bombed the homes and properties of citizens, as worshipers went out for Friday prayers in the town of Abu Salim.

GNA Minister of Interior Fathi Bashagha pledged the ministry’s full support to the forces to liberate the entire country from LNA's "illegal militias".

In a statement, the minister said he was confident the government and supporting forces would fully liberate all areas.

Bashagha was visiting Sirte – al-Jufrah field operations room where he met with military officials and head of the operations room to discuss recent developments in the region and preparations to liberate the areas.

Meanwhile, Arab League (AL) Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul-Gheit and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres discussed the recent developments of the Libyan crisis in the wake of the resignation of the UN envoy to Libya, Ghassan Salame.

Aboul-Gheit discussed, over the phone, Salame’s resignation and conveyed to Guterres his sincere appreciation for the important role he has played for Libya's peace and stability. He expressed confidence in the UN to choose another distinguished Arab figure to succeed Salame and lead UNSMIL.

Guterres praised the Arab League’s firm commitment to settling the Libyan crisis, stressing that the UN will continue to build on the efforts launched by Salame, according to a source.

Aboul-Gheit said they discussed the Libyan developments after Saleme’s sudden resignation citing health issues, noting that he briefed Guterres on the results of the last ministerial meeting of the Arab League.

Arab countries are committed to helping settle the Libyan crisis by strengthening mechanisms of cooperation with the UN and continuing to coordinate with other partners concerned with Libyan affairs, asserted Aboul-Gheit.

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Drones Drag Sudan War into Dangerous New Territory

Smoke billows after drone strikes by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) targeted the northern port in the Red Sea city of Port Sudan, Sudan, Tuesday, May 6, 2025. (AP Photo)
Smoke billows after drone strikes by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) targeted the northern port in the Red Sea city of Port Sudan, Sudan, Tuesday, May 6, 2025. (AP Photo)
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Drones Drag Sudan War into Dangerous New Territory

Smoke billows after drone strikes by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) targeted the northern port in the Red Sea city of Port Sudan, Sudan, Tuesday, May 6, 2025. (AP Photo)
Smoke billows after drone strikes by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) targeted the northern port in the Red Sea city of Port Sudan, Sudan, Tuesday, May 6, 2025. (AP Photo)

Paramilitary drone strikes targeting Sudan's wartime capital have sought to shatter the regular army's sense of security and open a dangerous new chapter in the war, experts say.

Since April 2023, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) group has been at war with the army, which has lately recaptured some territory and dislodged the paramilitaries from the capital Khartoum, said AFP.

The latter appeared to have the upper hand before Sunday, when drone strikes began blasting key infrastructure in Port Sudan, seat of the army-backed government on the Red Sea coast.

With daily strikes on the city since then, the RSF has sought to demonstrate its strength, discredit the army, disrupt its supply lines and project an air of legitimacy, experts believe.

According to Sudanese analyst Kholood Khair, "this is intended to undermine the army's ability to provide safety and security in areas they control", allowing the RSF to expand the war "without physically being there".

For two years, the paramilitaries relied mainly on lightning ground offensives, overwhelming army defenses in brutal campaigns of conquest.

But after losing nearly all of Khartoum in March, the RSF has increasingly turned to long-range air power.

Using weapons the army has hit strategic sites hundreds of kilometers (miles) away from their holdout positions on the capital's outskirts.

Michael Jones, research fellow at the Royal United Services Institute in London, says the RSF's pivot is a matter of both "strategic adaptation" and "if not desperation, then necessity".

Strategic setback

"The loss of Khartoum was both a strategic and symbolic setback," he told AFP.

In response, the RSF needed to broadcast a "message that the war isn't over", according to Sudanese analyst Hamid Khalafallah.

The conflict between Sudan's de facto leader, army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and his former deputy, RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, has split Africa's third-largest country in two.

The army holds the center, north and east, while the RSF controls nearly all of the vast western region of Darfur and, with its allies, parts of the south.

"It's unlikely that the RSF can retake Khartoum or reach Port Sudan by land, but drones enable them to create a sense of fear and destabilize cities" formerly considered safe, Khalafallah told AFP.

With drones and light munitions, it can "reach areas it hasn't previously infiltrated successfully", Jones said.

According to a retired Sudanese general, the RSF has been known to use two types of drone -- makeshift lightweight models with 120mm mortar rounds that explode on impact, and long-range drones capable of delivering guided missiles.

Both sides have been accused of war crimes including targeting civilians, but the RSF is specifically accused of rampant looting, ethnic cleansing and systematic sexual violence.