LNA Arrests 7 Qaeda Members in Sophisticated Operation

Libyan National Army (LNA) spokesman Ahmed al-Mismari. (AFP)
Libyan National Army (LNA) spokesman Ahmed al-Mismari. (AFP)
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LNA Arrests 7 Qaeda Members in Sophisticated Operation

Libyan National Army (LNA) spokesman Ahmed al-Mismari. (AFP)
Libyan National Army (LNA) spokesman Ahmed al-Mismari. (AFP)

The Libyan National Army (LNA), commanded by Khalifa Haftar, dealt a heavy blow to the al-Qaeda terrorist group by arresting seven of its members in southern Libya.

LNA spokesman Ahmed al-Mismari announced that the military had carried out a sophisticated operation against an al-Qaeda position in the southwestern region of Awbari, detaining seven of its members‎.

The detainees hail from different countries and include Hassan and Omar al-Washi. The LNA also seized large amounts of weapons and ammunition, as well as “dangerous documents”.

Mismari said the operation was part of efforts aimed at cracking down on terrorist cells in the country.

Separately, an LNA official revealed that Turkey had in recent days set up an air bridge aimed at transferring military equipment and fighter jets to support the Government of National Accord (GNA) in western Libya.

The development took place in spite of the agreements that were reached by the joint military committee (5+5) and that call for an end to the military cooperation between Ankara and the GNA.

The Turkish Defense Ministry also released photos of a military training undertaken by the GNA forces and overseen by Turkish officers.



Syria Detains Damascus-Based Leader of Prominent Palestinian Faction

Members of the Syria's security forces deploy during an operation in the edge of the town of Sharaya, south of Damascus, Wednesday April 30, 2025. (AP)
Members of the Syria's security forces deploy during an operation in the edge of the town of Sharaya, south of Damascus, Wednesday April 30, 2025. (AP)
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Syria Detains Damascus-Based Leader of Prominent Palestinian Faction

Members of the Syria's security forces deploy during an operation in the edge of the town of Sharaya, south of Damascus, Wednesday April 30, 2025. (AP)
Members of the Syria's security forces deploy during an operation in the edge of the town of Sharaya, south of Damascus, Wednesday April 30, 2025. (AP)

Syria on Saturday detained a prominent Damascus-based Palestinian official whose group was close to the government of ousted President Bashar al-Assad.

Talal Naji, 79, the leader of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command, or PFLP-GC, was detained Saturday morning shortly after he left his house with a driver and two guards, a Palestinian official told The Associated Press.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter, added that shortly after Naji was detained near his home in the Mazze neighborhood, security officials came to his home and questioned two unarmed guards for about an hour.

A Syrian government official told the AP that Naji was taken for questioning and should be released later. The official spoke anonymously because he was not authorized to speak to the media.

The PFLP-GC became known for dramatic attacks against Israel, including the hijacking an El Al jetliner in 1968 and the machine gunning of another airliner at Zurich airport in 1969. In 1970, it planted a bomb on a Swissair jet that blew up on a flight from Zurich to Tel Aviv, killing all 47 on aboard.

Naji’s arrest comes nearly two weeks after Syrian authorities detained two members of the Iran-backed Palestinian Islamic Jihad group. The group identified the two officials arrested at the time as its leader in Syria Khaled Khaled and another senior official Yasser Zafari. The Islamic Jihad took part in the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack on southern Israel that triggered the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.

Under Assad, several Palestinians factions were based in Syria and some of them remained after the fall of his 54-year Assad family in December.