UN Chief Urges Foreign Fighters Leave Libya by Saturday

A member of the GNA forces heads out to the front line atop a military vehicle from Misrata, Libya in February 2020. (Reuters)
A member of the GNA forces heads out to the front line atop a military vehicle from Misrata, Libya in February 2020. (Reuters)
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UN Chief Urges Foreign Fighters Leave Libya by Saturday

A member of the GNA forces heads out to the front line atop a military vehicle from Misrata, Libya in February 2020. (Reuters)
A member of the GNA forces heads out to the front line atop a military vehicle from Misrata, Libya in February 2020. (Reuters)

The UN chief is urging the departure of all foreign fighters and mercenaries from Libya by Saturday as called for in the Oct. 23 ceasefire agreement signed by the warring sides after years of fighting split the oil-rich North African nation in two.

Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also urges the Government of National Accord (GNA) that holds sway in the capital, Tripoli, in western Libya and the Libyan National Army (LNA) forces of commander Khalifa Haftar who run most of the east and the south, “to maintain their resolve in reaching a lasting political solution to the conflict, resolving economic issues and alleviating the humanitarian situation.”

In a report to the UN Security Council obtained Tuesday, Guterres welcomed the roadmap adopted by the Libyan Political Dialogue Forum -- 75 representatives from the country’s political and social spectrum -- leading to presidential and parliamentary elections on Dec. 24, 2021.

Guterres encouraged countries backing both sides and the broader international community to support implementation of the ceasefire “without delay,” including “ensuring the departure of all foreign fighters and mercenaries from Libya, and the full and unconditional respect of the Security Council arms embargo” against Libya.

He also urged the Security Council to give the UN political mission, known as UNSMIL, “a clear but flexible mandate” to support a Libyan-led mechanism to monitor implementation of the ceasefire. Diplomats said a council resolution outlining the UN role will likely be circulated in late January or early February.

In early January, Guterres recommended that international monitors be deployed to Libya under a UN umbrella to observe the October ceasefire agreement from a base in the strategic city of Sirte, the gateway to the country’s major oil fields and export terminals.

He said an advance team should be sent to Tripoli as a first step to “provide the foundations for a scalable United Nations ceasefire monitoring mechanism based in Sirte.”

The secretary-general expressed concern at the continuing threat of terrorism and violent extremism in the Libyan region, saying that reunifying the country’s security institutions would contribute “to mitigating the risk” of ISIS and other terrorist and extremist groups reconstituting.

“Though operationally weakened as a result of a series of counter-terrorism operations, ISIS ... and a support network of al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) remain a threat in Libya,” he said.

Guterres said the role of UN member nations and regional organizations, including the African Union, European Union and Arab League, “is critical.”

Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul-Gheit told the Security Council on Monday that recent events “could bring us closer to ending the division in this important Arab country.”

He urged that foreign fighters and mercenaries be removed by Saturday’s deadline, and urged a solution to the threat posed by armed groups and militias. He warned that unless this happens “the country will not enjoy any stability nor will any agreement on the transitional phase and the preparation for the upcoming elections survive.”

Aboul Gheit pledged Arab League support to the UN in monitoring the ceasefire agreement and in preparing for and observing December’s elections.



Hamas Expects 'Real Progress' in Cairo Talks to End Gaza War

 Palestinians make their way with belongings as they flee areas in the eastern part of Gaza City, after the Israeli army issued evacuation orders, in Gaza City, April 11, 2025. (Reuters)
Palestinians make their way with belongings as they flee areas in the eastern part of Gaza City, after the Israeli army issued evacuation orders, in Gaza City, April 11, 2025. (Reuters)
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Hamas Expects 'Real Progress' in Cairo Talks to End Gaza War

 Palestinians make their way with belongings as they flee areas in the eastern part of Gaza City, after the Israeli army issued evacuation orders, in Gaza City, April 11, 2025. (Reuters)
Palestinians make their way with belongings as they flee areas in the eastern part of Gaza City, after the Israeli army issued evacuation orders, in Gaza City, April 11, 2025. (Reuters)

Hamas expects "real progress" towards a ceasefire deal to end the war in Gaza, an official said, as senior leaders from the Palestinian movement hold talks with Egyptian mediators in Cairo on Saturday.

The meeting between Hamas and Egyptian mediators come amid ongoing violence in Gaza, as the Israeli military intercepted three projectiles fired from the territory and launched air strikes and artillery shelling on several areas. No injuries were reported, the military said in a statement.

The scheduled talks in Cairo also come days after US President Donald Trump suggested an agreement to secure the release of hostages held in Gaza was close to being finalized.

A Hamas official told AFP that the Palestinian group anticipated the meeting with Egyptian mediators would yield significant progress.

"We hope the meeting will achieve real progress towards reaching an agreement to end the war, halt the aggression and ensure the full withdrawal of occupation forces from Gaza," the official familiar with the ceasefire negotiations told AFP on condition of anonymity, as he was not authorized to speak publicly on the matter.

The delegation will be led by the group's chief negotiator Khalil al-Hayya, he said.

According to the official, Hamas has not yet received any new ceasefire proposals, despite Israeli media reports suggesting that Israel and Egypt had exchanged draft documents outlining a potential ceasefire and hostage release agreement.

"However, contacts and discussions with mediators are ongoing," he added, accusing Israel of "continuing its aggression" in Gaza.

The Times of Israel reported that Egypt's proposal would involve the release of eight living hostages and eight bodies, in exchange for a truce lasting between 40 and 70 days and a substantial release of Palestinian prisoners.

President Trump said during a cabinet meeting this week that "we're getting close to getting them (hostages in Gaza) back".

Trump's Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff was also quoted in an Israeli media report as saying "a very serious deal is taking shape, it's a matter of days".

Israel resumed its Gaza strikes on March 18, ending a two-month ceasefire with Hamas.

Since then, more than 1,500 people have been killed, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory to which Israel cut off aid more than a month ago.

Dozens of these strikes have killed "only women and children," according to a report by UN human rights office.

The report also warned that expanding Israeli evacuation orders were resulting in the "forcible transfer" of people into ever-shrinking areas, raising "real concern as to the future viability of Palestinians as a group in Gaza".

On Saturday, Israel continued with its offensive.

Gaza's civil defense agency reported an Israeli air strike on a house in Gaza City on Saturday morning.

AFP footage of the aftermath of the strike showed the bodies of four men, wrapped in white shrouds, at a local hospital, while several individuals gathered to offer prayers before the funeral.

The Israeli military, meanwhile, said its air force intercepted three projectiles that were identified as crossing into Israeli territory from southern Gaza on Saturday.

The ceasefire that ended on March 17 had led to the release of 33 hostages from Gaza -- eight of them deceased -- and the release of around 1,800 Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails.

The war in Gaza broke out after Hamas's October 7, 2023, attack on Israel. It resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli official figures.

Militants also took 251 hostages, 58 of whom are still held in Gaza, including 34 the Israeli military says are dead.

Gaza's health ministry said on Friday that at least 1,563 Palestinians had been killed since March 18 when the ceasefire collapsed, taking the overall death toll since the war began to 50,933.