Arab League, UN, EU and AU Demand Foreign Forces Leave Libya

Turkish-trained members of Libya's special forces demonstrate their skills during a graduation ceremony in the coastal city al-Khums, about 120kms east of the capital Tripoli, on April 8, 2021 - AFP
Turkish-trained members of Libya's special forces demonstrate their skills during a graduation ceremony in the coastal city al-Khums, about 120kms east of the capital Tripoli, on April 8, 2021 - AFP
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Arab League, UN, EU and AU Demand Foreign Forces Leave Libya

Turkish-trained members of Libya's special forces demonstrate their skills during a graduation ceremony in the coastal city al-Khums, about 120kms east of the capital Tripoli, on April 8, 2021 - AFP
Turkish-trained members of Libya's special forces demonstrate their skills during a graduation ceremony in the coastal city al-Khums, about 120kms east of the capital Tripoli, on April 8, 2021 - AFP

The Arab League, United Nations, European Union and the African Union on Tuesday demanded an immediate withdrawal of all foreign forces from Libya.

In a statement after a videoconference by its leaders, the Libya Quartet demanded "full compliance with the arms embargo and the immediate and unconditional withdrawal of all foreign forces and mercenaries from the entirety of Libya's territory."

The much-violated arms embargo has been in place since 2011, when an uprising toppled longtime Libyan dictator Moamer Kadhafi during the regional upheaval known as the Arab Spring, AFP reported.

The UN estimates that some 20,000 foreign fighters, mainly troops from Turkey and mercenaries from Russia, Syria, Chad and Sudan, are currently deployed in the country.

In recent weeks, the possible departure of Syrian mercenaries has been raised and, this weekend, N'Djamena mentioned the arrival in Chad from Libya of several hundred Chadian mercenaries who may have contributed to the fighting that led to the death of President Idriss Deby.

During its meeting, the Libya Quartet "condemned the continued violations of the UN arms embargo and emphasized that all external military intervention in Libya is unacceptable."

It also called for "the sustained implementation of measures to fully identify and dismantle these groups."



Iraq, UK Agree on Trade Package Worth up to $15 Billion, Defense Deal

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer (R) and Iraq's Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani (L) shake hands during their meeting in Downing Street in London, Britain, 14 January 2025. (EPA)
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer (R) and Iraq's Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani (L) shake hands during their meeting in Downing Street in London, Britain, 14 January 2025. (EPA)
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Iraq, UK Agree on Trade Package Worth up to $15 Billion, Defense Deal

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer (R) and Iraq's Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani (L) shake hands during their meeting in Downing Street in London, Britain, 14 January 2025. (EPA)
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer (R) and Iraq's Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani (L) shake hands during their meeting in Downing Street in London, Britain, 14 January 2025. (EPA)

Iraq and Britain have agreed on a trade package worth up to 12.3 billion pounds ($14.98 billion) and a bilateral defense deal, the Iraqi and British prime ministers said in a joint statement on Tuesday.

The deal, envisaging more than 10 times the total of bilateral trade in 2024, was announced after a meeting between Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani and British counterpart Keir Starmer at the latter's Downing Street offices.

It includes a 1.2-billion-pound project in which British-made power transmission systems will be used for a grid interconnection project between Iraq and Saudi Arabia, as well as a 500-million-pound plan to upgrade the Al-Qayyarah air base in northern Iraq.

A water infrastructure project by a UK-led consortium that will help provide clean water in arid southern and western Iraq is also part of the deal, the statement said. The project would be worth up to 5.3 billion pounds in UK exports.

Sudani and Starmer also signed a defense deal that "establishes the basis for a new era in security cooperation".

Sudani said earlier that the UK-Iraqi security deal would develop bilateral military ties after last year's announcement that the US-led coalition set up to fight ISIS would end its work in Iraq in 2026.

The Iraqi premier began an official visit to the United Kingdom on Monday amid historic geopolitical shifts in the Middle East.

Iraq is trying to avoid becoming a conflict zone once again amid a period of regional upheaval that has seen Iran's allies Hamas degraded in Gaza and Hezbollah battered in Lebanon during wars with Israel, and Bashar al-Assad toppled in Syria.