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Sarraj Discusses LNA Oil Agreement Fallout in Turkey

Oil installations in Ras Lanuf on the Libyan coast (Reuters)
Oil installations in Ras Lanuf on the Libyan coast (Reuters)
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Sarraj Discusses LNA Oil Agreement Fallout in Turkey

Oil installations in Ras Lanuf on the Libyan coast (Reuters)
Oil installations in Ras Lanuf on the Libyan coast (Reuters)

Turkey launched new efforts to protect the Libyan camp it supports, especially after the head of the Government of National Accord (GNA) Fayez al-Sarraj announced his intentions to resign.

The efforts follow a controversial deal arranged between Sarraj’s deputy, Ahmed Maiteeq, and the Libyan National Army (LNA) on the resumption of oil production.

Sarraj kickstarted a surprise visit to Turkey on Monday. GNA-linked sources revealed that Ankara gave Maiteeq a similar invitation within the framework of consolidating the GNA camp against Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, the LNA’s commander in chief.

The head of the GNA’s High Council of State, Khaled Al-Mishri, also visited Turkey and met with the Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar.

According to a statement by the ministry, Akar told Mishri that Turkey will continue to stand by the GNA as officials exchanged views regarding the latest developments in the war-ravaged North African nation.

The meetings come a few days after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan saying that Turkey was upset by Sarraj's announcement that he planned to quit by the end of October.

Nevertheless, Erdogan said that his country will continue to support the GNA, despite the announcement by Sarraj.

Presidential Spokesman Ibrahim Kalin added in a statement to the Turkish Demiroren News Agency that support for the GNA, along with the signed memorandum of understanding (MoU) between both parties is set to continue both in its maritime and security sectors.

He went on to explain that these agreements, will not be affected at this uncertain political period, as they were initiated between two governments, not through any single individual, adding that Turkish officials are due to travel to Tripoli within the coming days to discuss developments following Sarraj's announcement.

GNA Presidential Council (PC) member Mohamed Amari, for his part, voiced his rejection of the agreement between the Maiteeq and Haftar, saying that it is unlawful and cannot be ratified.

GNA Minister of Defense Salah Eddin al-Namroush also rejected the resumption of oil exports. He said the crimes committed in Libya would not be forgotten.

Namroush vowed in a statement published on the site of the GNA Ministry of Defense to lodge a complaint at the UN against the perpetrators of those crimes.

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Head of ISIS in Iraq and Syria Has Been Killed, Iraqi Prime Minister Says

This handout picture released by the Iraqi Prime Minister's press office shows Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani (R) meeting with Syria's interim Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani in Baghdad on March 14, 2025. (Iraqi Prime Minister’s Press Office / AFP)
This handout picture released by the Iraqi Prime Minister's press office shows Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani (R) meeting with Syria's interim Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani in Baghdad on March 14, 2025. (Iraqi Prime Minister’s Press Office / AFP)
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Head of ISIS in Iraq and Syria Has Been Killed, Iraqi Prime Minister Says

This handout picture released by the Iraqi Prime Minister's press office shows Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani (R) meeting with Syria's interim Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani in Baghdad on March 14, 2025. (Iraqi Prime Minister’s Press Office / AFP)
This handout picture released by the Iraqi Prime Minister's press office shows Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani (R) meeting with Syria's interim Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani in Baghdad on March 14, 2025. (Iraqi Prime Minister’s Press Office / AFP)

The head of ISIS in Iraq and Syria has been killed in Iraq in an operation by members of the Iraqi national intelligence service along with US-led coalition forces, the Iraqi prime minister announced Friday.

“The Iraqis continue their impressive victories over the forces of darkness and terrorism,” Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani said in a statement posted on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Abdallah Maki Mosleh al-Rifai, or “Abu Khadija,” was “deputy caliph” of the militant group and as “one of the most dangerous terrorists in Iraq and the world," the statement said.

A security official said the operation was carried out by an airstrike in Anbar province, in western Iraq. A second official said the operation took place Thursday night but that al-Rifai's death was confirmed Friday. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to comment publicly.

The announcement came on the same day as the first visit by Syria’s top diplomat to Iraq, during which the two countries pledged to work together to combat ISIS.

Iraqi Foreign Minister Fouad Hussein said at a news conference that “there are common challenges facing Syrian and Iraqi society, and especially the terrorists of ISIS.” He said the officials had spoken “in detail about the movements of ISIS, whether on the Syrian-Iraqi border, inside Syria or inside Iraq” during the visit.

Hussein referred to an operations room formed by Syria, Iraq, Türkiye, Jordan and Lebanon at a recent meeting in Amman to confront ISIS, and said it would soon begin work.

The relationship between Iraq and Syria is somewhat fraught after the fall of former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Al-Sudani came to power with the support of a coalition of Iran-backed factions, and Tehran was a major backer of Assad.

The current interim president of Syria, Ahmed al-Sharaa, was previously known as Abu Mohammed al-Golani and fought as an al-Qaeda militant in Iraq after the US invasion of 2003, and later fought against Assad's government in Syria.

But Syrian interim Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani focused on the historic ties between the two countries.

“Throughout history, Baghdad and Damascus have been the capitals of the Arab and Islamic world, sharing knowledge, culture and economy,” he said.

Strengthening the partnership between the two countries “will not only benefit our peoples, but will also contribute to the stability of the region, making us less dependent on external powers and better able to determine our own destiny,” he said.

The operation and the visit come at a time when Iraqi officials are anxious about an ISIS resurgence in the wake of the fall of Assad in Syria.

While Syria’s new rulers have pursued ISIS cells since taking power, some fear a breakdown in overall security that could allow the group to stage a resurgence.

The US and Iraq announced an agreement last year to wind down the military mission in Iraq of an American-led coalition fighting the ISIS group by September 2025, with US forces departing some bases where they have stationed troops during a two-decade-long military presence in the country.

When the agreement was reached to end the coalition’s mission in Iraq, Iraqi political leaders said the threat of ISIS was under control and they no longer needed Washington’s help to beat back the remaining cells.

But the fall of Assad in December led some to reassess that stance, including members of the Coordination Framework, a coalition of mainly Shiite, Iran-allied political parties that brought al-Sudani to power in late 2022.