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Questions Rise over Sarraj’s Visit to Turkey Days after Retracting Resignation

GNA head Fayez al-Sarraj. (AP file photo)
GNA head Fayez al-Sarraj. (AP file photo)
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Questions Rise over Sarraj’s Visit to Turkey Days after Retracting Resignation

GNA head Fayez al-Sarraj. (AP file photo)
GNA head Fayez al-Sarraj. (AP file photo)

Head of Libya’s Government of National Accord (GNA) Fayez al-Sarraj has kept mum over a recent surprise visit he made to Turkey, raising questions as to whether it was linked to his decision last week to retract his resignation.

Sarraj, who is still in Turkey, has not commented on reports that have linked the two developments together. The reports highlighted his secret meeting with Turkish head of intelligence Hakan Fidan.

Local Libyan media have criticized Sarraj for running the GNA from Turkey’s Istanbul, noting how he has avoided mentioning his whereabouts and official duties in all statements he has issued in the past two days.

Meanwhile, Speaker of the east-based Libyan parliament Aguila Saleh accused Turkey and other countries, as well as the Muslim Brotherhood, of seeking to diminish Egypt’s role in resolving the Libyan crisis.

Sources close to Saleh said he had met in Cairo on Sunday with senior Egyptian officials as part of the ongoing consultations between them to end the crisis.

He reiterated his support for the Cairo Declaration, describing it as a main basis for any possible future Libyan agreement.

Separately, acting head of the United Nations mission to Libya, Stephanie Williams, met in Istanbul on Saturday with Sarraj’s deputy, Ahmed Maiteeq. Talks focused on the upcoming Libyan Dialogue Forum that will be held in Tunisia on November 9.

Elsewhere, head of the pro-GNA High Council of State Khalid al-Mishri made a surprise visit to Qatar on Saturday where he met with its Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.

Mishri paid the visit at the invitation of head of the Qatari Shura Council.

Talks focused on coordinating position on issues of common interest, said an official statement. They also tackled bilateral relations and the latest developments in Libya.

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As Syrian Opposition Sweep into Aleppo, Army Closes Airport and Roads

A destroyed Syrian army tank in the village of Anjara on the outskirts of Aleppo, Nov. 29. (AP)
A destroyed Syrian army tank in the village of Anjara on the outskirts of Aleppo, Nov. 29. (AP)
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As Syrian Opposition Sweep into Aleppo, Army Closes Airport and Roads

A destroyed Syrian army tank in the village of Anjara on the outskirts of Aleppo, Nov. 29. (AP)
A destroyed Syrian army tank in the village of Anjara on the outskirts of Aleppo, Nov. 29. (AP)

Syrian authorities closed Aleppo airport as well as all roads leading into the city on Saturday, three military sources told Reuters, as the groups opposed to President Bashar al-Assad said they had reached the heart of Aleppo.
The opposition fighters, led by the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group, carried out a surprise sweep through government-held towns this week and reached Aleppo nearly a decade after having been forced out by Assad and his allies.
Russia, one of Assad's key allies, has promised Damascus extra military aid to thwart the opposition, two military sources said, adding new hardware would start arriving in the next 72 hours.
The Syrian army has been told to follow "safe withdrawal" orders from the main areas of the city that the opposition have entered, three army sources said.
The fighters began their incursion on Wednesday and by late Friday an operations room representing the offensive said they were sweeping through various neighbourhoods of Aleppo.
They are returning to the city for the first time since 2016, when Assad and his allies Russia, Iran, and regional Shi'ite militias retook it, with the insurgents agreeing to withdraw after months of bombardment and siege.
Mustafa Abdul Jaber, a commander in the Jaish al-Izza opposition brigade, said their speedy advance this week had been helped by a lack of Iran-backed manpower in the broader Aleppo province. Iran's allies in the region have suffered a series of blows at the hands of Israel as the Gaza war has expanded through the Middle East.
The opposition fighters have said the campaign was in response to stepped-up strikes in recent weeks against civilians by the Russian and Syrian air force on areas in opposition-held Idlib, and to preempt any attacks by the Syrian army.
Opposition sources in touch with Turkish intelligence said Turkiye, which supports the opposition, had given a green light to the offensive.
But Turkish foreign ministry spokesperson Oncu Keceli said on Friday that Turkiye sought to avoid greater instability in the region and had warned recent attacks undermined de-escalation agreements.
The attack is the biggest since March 2020, when Russia and Turkiye agreed to a deal to de-escalate the conflict.
CIVILIANS KILLED IN FIGHTING
On Friday, Syrian state television denied opposition had reached the city and said Russia was providing Syria's military with air support.
The Syrian military said it was fighting back against the attack and had inflicted heavy losses on the insurgents in the countryside of Aleppo and Idlib.
David Carden, UN Deputy Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for the Syria Crisis, said: "We're deeply alarmed by the situation unfolding in northwest Syria."
"Relentless attacks over the past three days have claimed the lives of at least 27 civilians, including children as young as 8 years old."
Syrian state news agency SANA said four civilians including two students were killed on Friday in Aleppo by insurgent shelling of university student dormitories. It was not clear if they were among the 27 dead reported by the UN official.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Friday that Moscow regarded the attack as a violation of Syria's sovereignty.
"We are in favor of the Syrian authorities bringing order to the area and restoring constitutional order as soon as possible," he said.