US Pushes for Withdrawal of Foreign Forces from Libya before Elections

Turkish forces search for mines and explosives on the outskirts of the Libyan capital, Tripoli (Getty Images)
Turkish forces search for mines and explosives on the outskirts of the Libyan capital, Tripoli (Getty Images)
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US Pushes for Withdrawal of Foreign Forces from Libya before Elections

Turkish forces search for mines and explosives on the outskirts of the Libyan capital, Tripoli (Getty Images)
Turkish forces search for mines and explosives on the outskirts of the Libyan capital, Tripoli (Getty Images)

The US has renewed its call on the withdrawal of foreign forces from Libya before the presidential and parliamentary elections scheduled for December 24.

Reports indicated that Turkey and Russia began negotiating in Moscow on an agreement for a simultaneous withdrawal of foreign fighters and mercenaries from Libyan territories.

Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Victoria Nuland told the US Senate that Washington hopes to reach an agreement to withdraw mercenaries from Libya before the election date.

Nuland also said that Turkey and Russia want to withdraw mercenaries from Libya simultaneously, stressing that Washington is working with the Special Envoy of the UN Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL), Jan Kubis, for this purpose.

Commander of the Libyan National Army (LNA) Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar dispatched the head of his General Commander's Office, Khairi al-Tamimi, to Moscow, on a surprise visit to discuss the joint coordination on the sidelines of meetings between Russian and Turkish officials.

Meanwhile, the Libyan unity government, headed by Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh, intends to hold its first meeting in the southern city of Sabha next week.

Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs Adel Jumaa announced that the government’s fifth regular meeting would be held in Sabha to identify the difficulties and challenges in the city.

Jumaa acknowledged the difficulties but asserted that the government is determined to find solutions to the city’s problems.



Egypt to Host Emergency Arab Summit on Gaza on March 4

18 February 2025, Palestinian Territories, Jabalia: A Palestinian sits by a fire outside his tent as people camp amid the ruins of their houses in Jabalia, after returning to northern Gaza during a ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas. Photo: Omar Ashtawy/APA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
18 February 2025, Palestinian Territories, Jabalia: A Palestinian sits by a fire outside his tent as people camp amid the ruins of their houses in Jabalia, after returning to northern Gaza during a ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas. Photo: Omar Ashtawy/APA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
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Egypt to Host Emergency Arab Summit on Gaza on March 4

18 February 2025, Palestinian Territories, Jabalia: A Palestinian sits by a fire outside his tent as people camp amid the ruins of their houses in Jabalia, after returning to northern Gaza during a ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas. Photo: Omar Ashtawy/APA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
18 February 2025, Palestinian Territories, Jabalia: A Palestinian sits by a fire outside his tent as people camp amid the ruins of their houses in Jabalia, after returning to northern Gaza during a ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas. Photo: Omar Ashtawy/APA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa

Egypt will host an emergency Arab summit on March 4 to discuss the developments of the Israel-Palestinian conflict, the Egyptian foreign ministry said on Tuesday.

Egypt is developing a plan to rebuild Gaza without forcing Palestinians out of the strip in a counter to President Donald Trump’s proposal to depopulate the territory so the US can take it over.
The proposal comes after an international uproar over Trump’s call for the removal of Gaza’s population of some 2 million Palestinians. Trump said the United States would take over the Gaza Strip and rebuild it into a “Riviera of the Middle East,” though Palestinians would not be allowed back.

Palestinians have widely said they will not leave their homeland while Egypt and Jordan have refused Trump’s calls for them to take in Gaza’s population.