Egypt Insists on Withdrawal of Mercenaries from Libya

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry meets with UN Special Envoy to Libya Abdoulaye Bathily in Cairo. (Egyptian Foreign Ministry)
Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry meets with UN Special Envoy to Libya Abdoulaye Bathily in Cairo. (Egyptian Foreign Ministry)
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Egypt Insists on Withdrawal of Mercenaries from Libya

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry meets with UN Special Envoy to Libya Abdoulaye Bathily in Cairo. (Egyptian Foreign Ministry)
Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry meets with UN Special Envoy to Libya Abdoulaye Bathily in Cairo. (Egyptian Foreign Ministry)

Cairo hosted on Monday meetings with Libyan officials, including parliament Speaker Aguila Saleh. The UN Special Envoy to Libya, Abdoulaye Bathily, also met Sameh Shoukry, the Egyptian Foreign Minister.

Egypt reiterated its demand for the withdrawal of mercenaries and foreign forces from Libya.

Secretary General of the Arab League Ahmed Aboul Gheit met with Saleh to discuss challenges facing the Libyan political process and solutions to the ongoing crisis.

After the meeting, Saleh said holding Libyan elections required several measures, but hoped the Constitutional Committee would complete its tasks soon. He also voiced optimism towards the Committee finding consensus on sovereign institutions.

Saleh said the executive authority represented in the government of Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah had been tasked with specific duties to complete within a deadline, but it failed.

He called on the UN envoy, Bathily, to invite the Constitutional Base Committee, formed by the parliament and the High Council of State, to meet.

The speaker also stressed that the absence of a UN envoy during the recent period, after the resignation of Stephanie Williams, hindered the completion of the constitutional foundation because the meeting of the committee must be held under the auspices of the UN.

A new round of negotiations on the “constitutional track” between Saleh and the head of the High Council of State, Khaled al-Mishri, will start in Cairo with the presence of Bathily, sources reported.

Saleh and Mishri did not announce in advance that either of them would meet in Cairo.

However, council members talked about a meeting aimed at completing the discussion on unifying the executive authority, filling sovereign positions, and providing a constitutional basis for postponed presidential and parliamentary elections.

Shoukry stressed “the importance of the UN role in supporting the political and constitutional processes, legal frameworks and encouraging Libyan dialogue.”

The FM added that the implementation of standing agreements and legal mandates requires first the application of UN and international decisions regarding the withdrawal all foreign forces and mercenaries from Libya.

The pullout, according to Shoukry, needs to be complete within a certain timeline.



Syria’s Reconciliation Committee Prioritizes Stability after Anger Over Prisoner Releases

Member of the High Committee for National Reconciliation Hassan Soufan and the spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Facebook)
Member of the High Committee for National Reconciliation Hassan Soufan and the spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Facebook)
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Syria’s Reconciliation Committee Prioritizes Stability after Anger Over Prisoner Releases

Member of the High Committee for National Reconciliation Hassan Soufan and the spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Facebook)
Member of the High Committee for National Reconciliation Hassan Soufan and the spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Facebook)

Syria’s High Committee for National Reconciliation has defended recent controversial prisoner releases, saying the decision aims to preserve national stability amid ongoing tensions.

Committee member Hassan Soufan confirmed that several officers recently freed had voluntarily surrendered in 2021 at the Iraqi border and in the Al-Sukhna region, under a formal request for safe conduct.

Speaking at a press conference in Damascus on Tuesday, Soufan addressed public backlash following the releases and acknowledged the deep pain felt by victims’ families.

“We fully understand the anger and grief of the families of martyrs,” he said. “But the current phase requires decisions that can help secure relative stability for the coming period.”

The controversy erupted after the Ministry of Interior announced on Sunday the release of dozens of detainees in Latakia, many of whom were arrested during the “Deterrence of Aggression” operation, which contributed to the fall of the Assad regime.

Among those involved in the mediation effort was Fadi Saqr, a former commander in the regime’s National Defense Forces, who has been accused of war crimes, including involvement in the Tadamon massacre in southern Damascus.

Soufan explained that the released officers had undergone investigation and were found not to have participated in war crimes. “Keeping them imprisoned no longer serves a national interest,” he said. “It has no legal justification.”

He stressed that Syria is in a delicate phase of national reconciliation, in which balancing justice and peace is critical.

“There are two parallel tracks - transitional justice and civil peace - and today, the priority is civil peace, as it lays the groundwork for all other strategic efforts,” he said.

Soufan added that the committee has requested expanded powers from the Syrian president, including the authority to release detainees not proven guilty and to coordinate directly with state institutions.

He insisted that the aim is not to bypass justice, but to prevent further bloodshed. “Vengeance and retribution are not paths to justice,” he said. “They allow real criminals to slip away while deepening divisions.”

While affirming that transitional justice remains essential, Soufan noted that it should focus on top perpetrators of atrocities, not individuals who merely served under the regime. “Justice means accountability for those who planned and carried out major crimes, not blanket punishment.”