Turkish Forces Supervise Training, Graduation of Batch of Libyan Officers  

Head of the Government of National Unity Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah. (Reuters)
Head of the Government of National Unity Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah. (Reuters)
TT
20

Turkish Forces Supervise Training, Graduation of Batch of Libyan Officers  

Head of the Government of National Unity Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah. (Reuters)
Head of the Government of National Unity Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah. (Reuters)

The Commander of the Turkish forces in Libya, Colonel Osman Itaj, and Muhammad Al-Haddad, the chief of staff of the forces loyal to Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah's Government of National Unity (GNU) attended on Friday the graduation ceremony of a new batch of infantry, artillery and armored school officers, after they received training by the Turkish army.  

Meanwhile, the Chief of Staff of the Land Forces announced his intention to form and build two infantry brigades and an artillery regiment, to boost the military.  

On a different note, Libya’s second vice-president, Abdallah El Lafi, arrived in Niamey on Friday participate in a summit on African industrialization and economic diversification.  

On Thursday, Parliament Speaker Aguila Saleh announced that he met in the city of Al-Qubba, with Qatar’s ambassador, Khaled Al-Dosari, with whom he discussed bilateral relations, the latest developments on Libya, and means to end the Libyan crisis by holding elections.  

Al-Dosari was quoted as confirming his country’s support for Libya to overcome the current crisis, preserve the unity of the Libyan territory, support the political track, and hold free and fair elections based on consensus among Libyans.  

On the other hand, the Anti-Illegal Migration Authority in Libya organized, on Friday, land convoys to the eastern and southern borders of the country, to return more than 200 migrants to their countries of origin, in an unusual coordination between the divided authorities in eastern and western Libya.  

Since the beginning of this year and until last month, more than 20,000 migrants have been returned to Libya. While the fate of 714 migrants remains unknown, more than 400 drowned, according to the International Organization for Migration. Most of them cross Libya’s vast desert borders from Sudan, Chad, Niger and Egypt. 



Syrian Interior Ministry Arrests ISIS Cell Responsible for Church Attack

People gather at Mar Elias Church in the Dweila neighborhood of Damascus following the suicide bombing on Sunday, June 22, 2025 (EPA) 
People gather at Mar Elias Church in the Dweila neighborhood of Damascus following the suicide bombing on Sunday, June 22, 2025 (EPA) 
TT
20

Syrian Interior Ministry Arrests ISIS Cell Responsible for Church Attack

People gather at Mar Elias Church in the Dweila neighborhood of Damascus following the suicide bombing on Sunday, June 22, 2025 (EPA) 
People gather at Mar Elias Church in the Dweila neighborhood of Damascus following the suicide bombing on Sunday, June 22, 2025 (EPA) 

Hours after Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa vowed that those involved in a “heinous” suicide attack on a Damascus church a day earlier would face justice, Syria’s Interior Ministry said authorities had arrested several suspects in connection with the attack.

The shooting and suicide bombing Sunday at the Mar Elias church in the Dweila district of the Syrian capital killed 25 people and injured 63 others, according to the Health Ministry.

“In coordination with the General Intelligence Service, the Ministry carried out security operations against ISIS-linked terrorist cells in the Damascus countryside, arresting a cell leader and five members, and killing two others affiliated with the terrorist attack on Mar Elias Church in Damascus,” the Syrian Interior Ministry said in a statement on Monday.

“During the raid, quantities of weapons and ammunition were seized, in addition to explosive vests and mines. A motorcycle bomb that had been prepared for detonation was also found,” it said.

On Monday, the Syrian President expressed his deepest condolences to the families of the victims of the church bombing.

He said “this heinous crime that targeted innocent people in their worship places reminds us of the importance of solidarity and unity –government and people- in confronting threats to our security and the stability of our country.”

Sharaa added, “Today, we all stand united, rejecting injustice and crime in all its forms. We pledge to the victims that we will work day and night, mobilizing all our specialized security services, to apprehend all those who participated in and planned this heinous crime and bring them to justice to face their just punishment.”

The attack is the first such bombing in Damascus since the fall of Bashar Assad’s regime. It raised fear among the people.

Commenting on the attack, a man in his 70s described the attack as “a huge and horrible strike,” stressing the need for “the authorities to tighten security measures on churches, all places of worship, and busy places.”

On Monday, Asharq Al-Awsat spotted heavy deployment of local security agents in the capital’s neighborhoods and major roads, amid heightened security measures.

Adbdulrahman Alhaj, a researcher in Islamic studies, told Asharq Al-Awsat that the Interior Ministry statement that linked the attack to an ISIS suicide attack is a suggestion that the ministry’s spokesman Noureddine Al-Baba had mentioned in his Sunday press briefing.

Alhaj said he supports the ministry’s conclusions as ISIS had recently issued several threats signaling plans to confront the new regime in Damascus particularly, al-Sharaa.