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.”



SDF Offers Tribes in Syria’s Deir Ezzor Role in Talks, Right to Name Governor

SDF commander Mazloum Abdi meets with Deir Ezzor delegates. (SDF)
SDF commander Mazloum Abdi meets with Deir Ezzor delegates. (SDF)
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SDF Offers Tribes in Syria’s Deir Ezzor Role in Talks, Right to Name Governor

SDF commander Mazloum Abdi meets with Deir Ezzor delegates. (SDF)
SDF commander Mazloum Abdi meets with Deir Ezzor delegates. (SDF)

Arab tribal leaders, who took part in recent meetings with the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the Autonomous Administration in northeast Syria, said they were offered a greater role in governing Deir Ezzor province and a seat at the table in any future talks with the Damascus government, according to tribal sources.

The meetings, held at the US-led coalition’s base in al-Shaddadi, south of Hasakah, were led by SDF commander Mazloum Abdi and senior officials from the Kurdish-led administration.

Discussions centered on the latest international efforts to revive dialogue with Damascus, including Abdi’s talks with the French foreign minister and US Syria envoy in Paris, as well as earlier meetings in Amman.

At the heart of the discussions was a March 1 agreement between Abdi and Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa that envisages integrating the SDF and local governing bodies into Syrian state institutions by the end of the year.

Tribal sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that leaders were presented with a proposal consisting of three main elements: first, a formal role for Arab tribes in upcoming negotiations with Damascus; second, a 50% quota for tribal figures from eastern, northern, and western Deir Ezzor - areas under SDF influence - in a newly structured provincial council, with nominees selected in coordination between tribal elders and the SDF.

The third clause would give Arab tribes the authority to name the governor of Deir Ezzor, replacing the current system of presidential appointment.

In a statement following the meeting, the SDF said Abdi had assured Deir Ezzor residents that local civilian and military bodies would have a say in any future settlement with the Syrian government, emphasizing that the SDF remained the “guarantor of stability and security” and would continue its mission without hesitation.

Abdi also reportedly clarified that the handover of Deir Ezzor’s institutions, civilian and military alike, to the government would be limited to those that operated in SDF-controlled areas prior to the fall of the former regime at the end of last year. Similar arrangements would later extend to the cities of Raqqa and Hasakah.

According to the sources, Abdi stressed that the SDF had no intention of surrendering territory or dismantling the Autonomous Administration. Instead, any rapprochement with Damascus would be based on mutual understandings and a comprehensive integration process acceptable to both sides.

Committees from both the SDF and the administration are expected to meet with government officials in the coming days to push forward with the plan.

During the transitional phase, local councils and security agencies under the Autonomous Administration in Deir Ezzor will continue operating normally, with a view to developing a new, participatory administrative system at the provincial level.

Observers say Abdi’s remarks point to a possible breakthrough in efforts to incorporate the SDF as a unified bloc within the Syrian Ministry of Defense, alongside the integration of administrative institutions into the broader state framework. These understandings remain in their early stages, however, and a final deal is yet to be reached.

A planned follow-up meeting in Paris on July 25 between Syrian government officials and an Autonomous Administration delegation was postponed at the request of Damascus, which informed the SDF through the US-led coalition that a new date would be set soon.

Meanwhile, for the third consecutive day, unknown gunmen have targeted SDF positions in Deir Ezzor countryside, despite the presence of coalition forces.

On Monday, two assailants on a motorcycle fired at an SDF military vehicle near the town of al-Sour in northern Deir Ezzor, causing material damage but no casualties, according to an SDF military source and local residents.

A similar attack on Sunday struck an SDF outpost in the nearby village of Ruwaished, leading to a brief exchange of fire but no injuries. On Saturday, the SDF reported one of its fighters was killed and another wounded when gunmen believed to be ISIS sympathizers attacked a vehicle in the village of al-Zar, east of Deir Ezzor.