Turkey Says Foreign Mercenaries Should Leave Libya, but It Has Accord with Libyan Govt

Pro-Turkish Syrian fighters gather near the Turkish village of Akinci along the border with Syria. File photo: AFP
Pro-Turkish Syrian fighters gather near the Turkish village of Akinci along the border with Syria. File photo: AFP
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Turkey Says Foreign Mercenaries Should Leave Libya, but It Has Accord with Libyan Govt

Pro-Turkish Syrian fighters gather near the Turkish village of Akinci along the border with Syria. File photo: AFP
Pro-Turkish Syrian fighters gather near the Turkish village of Akinci along the border with Syria. File photo: AFP

Turkey and Germany agree that all foreign mercenaries in Libya need to leave the country, but Ankara has a bilateral agreement with the Libyan government for its troops to be stationed there, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Thursday.

On Wednesday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel told Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan that the withdrawal of foreign troops from Libya would be an "important signal" as both leaders vowed to support the new interim government, a German government spokesman said.

Speaking at a news conference with his German counterpart Heiko Maas in Berlin, Cavusoglu said Turkish troops in Libya were there under agreement with Libya's previous Government of National Accord and should not be confused with the foreign mercenaries stationed there.



Britain 'Taking Forward' Gaza Food Airdrop Plan, Says PM Starmer's Office

A volunteer distributes rations of red lentil soup to displaced Palestinians in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on February 18, 2024. (Photo by SAID KHATIB / AFP)
A volunteer distributes rations of red lentil soup to displaced Palestinians in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on February 18, 2024. (Photo by SAID KHATIB / AFP)
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Britain 'Taking Forward' Gaza Food Airdrop Plan, Says PM Starmer's Office

A volunteer distributes rations of red lentil soup to displaced Palestinians in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on February 18, 2024. (Photo by SAID KHATIB / AFP)
A volunteer distributes rations of red lentil soup to displaced Palestinians in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on February 18, 2024. (Photo by SAID KHATIB / AFP)

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Saturday spoke to his French and German counterparts and outlined UK plans to get aid to people in Gaza and evacuate sick and injured children, his office said.

"The prime minister set out how the UK will also be taking forward plans to work with partners such as Jordan to airdrop aid and evacuate children requiring medical assistance," a statement said, AFP reported.

In a phone conversation, Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron and the German Chancellor Friedrich Merz discussed the humanitarian situation in Gaza "which they agreed is appalling".

"They all agreed it would be vital to ensure robust plans are in place to turn an urgently needed ceasefire into lasting peace," according to a readout released by Downing Street.

"They discussed their intention to work closely together on a plan.... which would pave the way to a long-term solution and security in the region. They agreed that once this plan was worked up, they would seek to bring in other key partners, including in the region, to advance it," it added.

The discussion comes a day after UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres slammed the international community for turning a blind eye to widespread starvation in the Gaza Strip, calling it a "moral crisis that challenges the global conscience".

Aid groups have warned of surging cases of starvation, particularly among children, in war-ravaged Gaza, which Israel placed under an aid blockade in March amid its ongoing war with Hamas. That blockade was partially eased two months later.

The trickle of aid since then has been controlled by the Israeli- and US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.