Egypt Says Foreign Troops Must Leave Libya

Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry met with the Russian Security Council Secretary, Nikolai Patrushev, in Moscow (Egypt's Foreign Ministry)
Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry met with the Russian Security Council Secretary, Nikolai Patrushev, in Moscow (Egypt's Foreign Ministry)
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Egypt Says Foreign Troops Must Leave Libya

Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry met with the Russian Security Council Secretary, Nikolai Patrushev, in Moscow (Egypt's Foreign Ministry)
Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry met with the Russian Security Council Secretary, Nikolai Patrushev, in Moscow (Egypt's Foreign Ministry)

Egypt reiterated that all foreign forces must leave Libyan territories, rejecting any foreign presence in the country.

Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry discussed with the Russian Security Council Secretary, Nikolai Patrushev, in Moscow bilateral relations and international and regional developments.

Shoukry said Egypt supports the roadmap set by Libyans, reiterating the importance of the planned presidential and parliamentary elections.

Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ahmed Hafez said that Shoukry stressed the need for all foreign forces to leave Libya.

Shoukry also discussed with the Russian official recent Palestinian developments and Egypt's continuous efforts to revive the peace process.

They also addressed Cairo's current efforts to support reconstruction efforts in the Palestinian territories.

Cairo attaches great importance to the pullout of foreign forces and mercenaries from Libya, which President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi has stressed in most of his meetings with foreign officials.

In a meeting of the Peace and Security Council (PSC) of the African Union (AU) on Libya last week, Shoukry stressed that the presence of foreign forces and mercenaries in Libya has an impact on its national security and the security of its Arab neighbors.

He said that the international community had not taken firm measures to end the presence of foreign forces and mercenaries in country.

"Egypt warned more than a year ago of the consequences of the continuation of the armed conflict in Libya and that it may have to take measures to protect its national security and preserve the balance of power if it was disrupted," he added.

Shoukry reiterated Egypt's call for the "unconditional, simultaneous, and coordinated exit."



UN Official Denies Israeli Claim Yemen Airport was Military Target

The control tower of Sanaa international airport was damaged by the strikes on December 26  - AFP
The control tower of Sanaa international airport was damaged by the strikes on December 26 - AFP
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UN Official Denies Israeli Claim Yemen Airport was Military Target

The control tower of Sanaa international airport was damaged by the strikes on December 26  - AFP
The control tower of Sanaa international airport was damaged by the strikes on December 26 - AFP

The top UN official for humanitarian aid in Yemen, who narrowly dodged an aerial bombing raid by Israel on Sanaa's airport, denied Friday that the facility had any military purpose.

Israel said that it was targeting "military infrastructure" in Thursday's raids and that targets around the country were used by Houthis to "smuggle Iranian weapons" and bring in senior Iranian officials.

UN humanitarian coordinator Julien Harneis said the airport "is a civilian location that is used by the United Nations."

"It's used by the International Committee of the Red Cross, it is used for civilian flights -- that is its purpose," he told reporters by video link from Yemen, AFP reported.

"Parties to the conflict have an obligation to ensure that they are not striking civilian targets," he added. "The obligation is on them, not on us. We don't need to prove we're civilians."

Harneis described how he, World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, and 18 other UN staff, were caught up in the attack, which he said also took place as a packed airliner was touching down nearby.

One UN staffer was seriously wounded in the strikes, which destroyed the air traffic control facility, Harneis said. The rest of the team was bundled into armored vehicles for safety.

"There was one airstrike approximately 300 meters (985 feet) to the south of us and another airstrike approximately 300 meters to the north of us," he said.

"What was most frightening about that airstrike wasn't the effect on us -- it's that the airstrikes took place... as a civilian airliner from Yemenia Air, carrying hundreds of Yemenis, was about to land," he said.

"In fact, that airliner from Yemenia Air was landing, taxiing in, when the air traffic control was destroyed."

Although the plane "was able to land safely... it could have been far, far worse."

The Israeli attack, he said came with "zero indication of any potential airstrikes."

Harneis said the airport is "absolutely vital" to continued humanitarian aid for Yemen. "If that airport is disabled, it will paralyze humanitarian operations."

The United Nations has labeled Yemen "the largest humanitarian crisis in the world," with 24.1 million people in need of humanitarian aid and protection.

Public institutions that provide healthcare, water, sanitation and education have collapsed in the wake of years of war.