Haftar Accepts ‘Popular Mandate’ to Rule Libya

Libyan National Army (LNA) commander Khalifa Haftar. (Reuters)
Libyan National Army (LNA) commander Khalifa Haftar. (Reuters)
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Haftar Accepts ‘Popular Mandate’ to Rule Libya

Libyan National Army (LNA) commander Khalifa Haftar. (Reuters)
Libyan National Army (LNA) commander Khalifa Haftar. (Reuters)

“popular mandate” for him to rule Libya.

In a televised address, he said he was “responding to the will of the people” to annul the Skheirat agreement and manage the country’s affairs for the coming future.

He said the agreement has “destroyed” the country, adding that the people have tasked the LNA general command with a “historic” duty in such extraordinary times.

It is “proud to annul the political agreement, which will now be a thing of the past, through the will of the Libyan people, who are the source of powers,” he added.

The Skheirat deal, signed in 2015, has led Libya on a “dangerous” path, Haftar remarked.

The agreement led to the formation of the presidential council, which is headed by Fayez al-Sarraj, and the High Council of State, headed by Muslim Brotherhood member Khalid al-Mishri.

Sarraj’s Government of National Accord did not comment on Haftar’s announcement, but it will likely reject it.

“We announce that the general command is answering the will of the people, despite the heavy burden and the many obligations and the size of the responsibility, and we will be subject to the people’s wish,” Haftar said.

He also vowed to prepare conditions to restore the state’s civil institutions, in line with the people’s aspirations, while the LNA continues its operation to liberate the country from terrorist and criminal gangs affiliated with the GNA.

The US Embassy in Tripoli said that Washington “regrets... Haftar’s suggestion that changes to Libya’s political structure can be imposed by unilateral declaration.”

“The Embassy nevertheless welcomes any opportunity to engage LNA commander Haftar and all parties in serious dialogue about how the country can move forward.”



Israel Says it Carried Out Warning Strike on 'Extremists' in Syria Threatening Druze

Syrian security forces secure the area following armed clashes in Jaramana town, near Damascus, Syria, 29 April 2025. EPA/MOHAMMED AL RIFAI
Syrian security forces secure the area following armed clashes in Jaramana town, near Damascus, Syria, 29 April 2025. EPA/MOHAMMED AL RIFAI
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Israel Says it Carried Out Warning Strike on 'Extremists' in Syria Threatening Druze

Syrian security forces secure the area following armed clashes in Jaramana town, near Damascus, Syria, 29 April 2025. EPA/MOHAMMED AL RIFAI
Syrian security forces secure the area following armed clashes in Jaramana town, near Damascus, Syria, 29 April 2025. EPA/MOHAMMED AL RIFAI

The Israeli military carried out a warning strike against "extremists" preparing to attack members of the Druze minority in the Syrian town of Sahnaya, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday in a joint statement with Defense Minister Israel Katz.

"The IDF (military) carried out a warning action and struck the organization of an extremist group preparing to attack the Druze population in the town of Sahnaya, in the Damascus region of Syria," said the statement.

The Israeli announcement came after an eruption of deadly sectarian violence in predominantly Druze areas near Damascus.

The Israeli statement also said a message "was passed on to the Syrian regime - Israel expects it to act in order to prevent harm to the Druze."

A spokesman for Syria's interior ministry, speaking to Reuters from Sahnaya said he had no indication that an attack had taken place.