Libyan Army Says ‘Ready for Any Military Act’

FILE PHOTO: A general view of the El Sharara oilfield, Libya December 3, 2014. REUTERS/Ismail Zitouny/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A general view of the El Sharara oilfield, Libya December 3, 2014. REUTERS/Ismail Zitouny/File Photo
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Libyan Army Says ‘Ready for Any Military Act’

FILE PHOTO: A general view of the El Sharara oilfield, Libya December 3, 2014. REUTERS/Ismail Zitouny/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A general view of the El Sharara oilfield, Libya December 3, 2014. REUTERS/Ismail Zitouny/File Photo

The Libyan National Army led by Khalifa Haftar has pledged to deter Turkish forces that are backing Fayez al-Sarraj’s Government of National Accord (GNA) in Libya’s war.

The LNA is “ready for any military act,” it announced on Friday.

Its statement came as Libya's National Oil Corporation (NOC) lifted force majeure on all oil exports as a Vitol tanker loaded at Es Sider after a half-year standstill.

"The increase in production will take a long time," NOC said.

NOC chief Mustafa Sanalla welcomed the resumption of oil production, saying: "We are very glad finally to be able to take this important step to national recovery."

The US embassy hailed news that the NOC had lifted force majeure "and resumed its vital work on behalf of all Libyans."

It vowed to cooperate with the UN mission in Libya to ensure "revenues are not misappropriated but rather preserved for the benefit of the Libyan people".

France's embassy also rejected "the militarization of oil installations" and stressed "the importance of preserving NOC neutrality".

Libya produced 1.22 million barrels per day (bpd) before January and had planned to increase production to 2.1 million bpd by 2024, the NOC said this week.



Italy’s Meloni: Recognizing Palestinian State Before It Is Established May Be ‘Counterproductive’

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni attends a press conference with the Algerian president at the end of an Italy-Algeria intergovernmental summit in Rome, Italy, 23 July 2025. (EPA)
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni attends a press conference with the Algerian president at the end of an Italy-Algeria intergovernmental summit in Rome, Italy, 23 July 2025. (EPA)
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Italy’s Meloni: Recognizing Palestinian State Before It Is Established May Be ‘Counterproductive’

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni attends a press conference with the Algerian president at the end of an Italy-Algeria intergovernmental summit in Rome, Italy, 23 July 2025. (EPA)
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni attends a press conference with the Algerian president at the end of an Italy-Algeria intergovernmental summit in Rome, Italy, 23 July 2025. (EPA)

Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on Saturday that recognizing the State of Palestine before it is established could be counterproductive.

"I am very much in favor of the State of Palestine, but I am not in favor of recognizing it prior to establishing it," Meloni told Italian daily La Repubblica.

"If something that doesn't exist is recognized on paper, the problem could appear to be solved when it isn't," she added.

France's decision to recognize a Palestinian state at the United Nations General Assembly in September drew condemnation from Israel and the United States, amid the war in Gaza between Israel and Palestinian group Hamas.

On Friday, Italy's foreign minister said recognition of a Palestinian state must occur simultaneously with recognition of Israel by the new Palestinian entity.

A German government spokesperson said on Friday that Berlin was not planning to recognize a Palestinian state in the short term and said its priority now is to make "long-overdue progress" towards a two-state solution.