Libya’s GNA Seizes Another Town

Damage is seen following shelling at Tripoli's Mitiga airport in Tripoli, Libya May 10, 2020. REUTERS/Ismail Zitouny
Damage is seen following shelling at Tripoli's Mitiga airport in Tripoli, Libya May 10, 2020. REUTERS/Ismail Zitouny
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Libya’s GNA Seizes Another Town

Damage is seen following shelling at Tripoli's Mitiga airport in Tripoli, Libya May 10, 2020. REUTERS/Ismail Zitouny
Damage is seen following shelling at Tripoli's Mitiga airport in Tripoli, Libya May 10, 2020. REUTERS/Ismail Zitouny

Forces allied with Libya’s Government of National Accord (GNA) said on Thursday that they have wrestled another key town from the Libyan National Army (LNA) of Khalifa Haftar.

Mohamed Gnono, spokesman for the Tripoli-allied forces, announced in a statement posted on social media the fall of the town of al-Asabaa, about 50 kilometers south of Tripoli.

Al-Asabaa is located on a key road that links Haftar's forces besieging Tripoli to Tarhuna, their main western stronghold and supply line southeast of the capital.

On Monday, the GNA of Fayez al-Sarraj seized al-Watiya airbase in Tripoli's southwestern desert reaches.

LNA spokesman Ahmed al-Mismari reiterated that there were 1,500 Turkish military personnel on Libyan soil, fighting on behalf of the GNA.

“The battle is continuing against terrorism, against the Turkish and against the extremists,” he said at a news conference on Thursday.

Turkey has sent armored drones, air defenses and more recently Syrian militants with links to extremist groups to prop up the GNA.

On Wednesday, Haftar’s forces announced they would withdraw up to 3 kilometers from the front line around Tripoli in a humanitarian gesture aimed at giving the residents a respite from the fighting to celebrate Eid al-Fitr.

The Russian Foreign Ministry said Thursday that Sergei Lavrov had a call with his Turkish counterpart, Mevlut Cavudoglu, and that they underlined the need for an immediate ceasefire in Libya and the resumption of a political process based on decisions made at a conference in Berlin earlier this year.

Turkey warned that attacks on its interests in Libya by Haftar's forces will have "very grave consequences.”

"In the event Turkish interests in Libya are targeted, this will have very grave consequences," Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman Hami Aksoy said. Presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin was quoted as saying by broadcaster NTV that attacks on Turkish positions would prompt heavy retaliation.



UN Peacekeepers Say Troops Attacked by Individuals in South Lebanon

A joint force from UNIFIL and the Lebanese army in Naqoura near the Israeli border (Archive - AFP)
A joint force from UNIFIL and the Lebanese army in Naqoura near the Israeli border (Archive - AFP)
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UN Peacekeepers Say Troops Attacked by Individuals in South Lebanon

A joint force from UNIFIL and the Lebanese army in Naqoura near the Israeli border (Archive - AFP)
A joint force from UNIFIL and the Lebanese army in Naqoura near the Israeli border (Archive - AFP)

United Nations peacekeepers said rock-throwing individuals confronted them during a patrol on Tuesday in south Lebanon, calling repeated targeting of their troops "unacceptable".

The UN Interim Forces in Lebanon (UNIFIL), deployed since 1978 to separate Lebanon and Israel, sits on a five-member committee to supervise the ceasefire between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah.

In a statement, UNIFIL said peacekeepers conducting "a planned patrol" coordinated with the Lebanese army were "confronted by a group of individuals in civilian clothing in the vicinity of Hallusiyat al-Tahta, in southern Lebanon".

"The group attempted to obstruct the patrol using aggressive means, including throwing stones at the peacekeepers," the statement read, adding that "one peacekeeper was struck" but no injuries were reported, AFP reported.

The situation was defused when the Lebanese army intervened, allowing the peacekeeping force to continue its patrol.

"It is unacceptable that UNIFIL peacekeepers continue to be targeted," the statement added.

UNIFIL spokesman Andrea Tenenti told AFP a Finnish soldier was slapped during the confrontation.

A witness, who requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of the situation, said an altercation ensued between locals and the Lebanese army, who were searching for the man who slapped the peacekeeper.

One man opposing the army was injured and hospitalized, the witness said.

In a statement, Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said he "strongly condemns the repeated attacks" on UNIFIL forces and called for the attackers to be stopped and held accountable.

There have been several confrontations between people in south Lebanon, where Hezbollah holds sway, and UN peacekeepers in recent weeks.

Confrontations are typically defused by the Lebanese army and rarely escalate.

In December 2022, an Irish peacekeeper was killed in a shooting at a UN armoured vehicle in the south. Hezbollah surrendered a man accused of the crime, but he was released around a year later.

The November ceasefire agreement, which sought to end over a year of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, states that only Lebanese troops and UN peacekeepers may be deployed in the country's south.

Israel is supposed to have fully withdrawn its troops from Lebanon according to the deal, but has remained in five positions it deems strategic and has repeatedly bombed the country.