Haftar seeks military support from Egypt

Libyan army chief, General Khalifa Haftar, is expected to visit neighbouring Egypt in the next few days to seek military support, Al-Araby Al-Jadeed reported.

Sources told the news site that the visit comes in the context of continuous communication with the Egyptian political leadership on the situation in Libya, in light of Egypt’s commitment to support the Libyan National Army, led by Haftar, in the face the threat of “extremist groups”.

They added that Haftar is set to meet in Cairo with Egyptian military officials who are in charge of Libyan affairs. It was not made clear whether he would also meet President Abdel Fatah Al-Sisi. The sources pointed out that the visit comes within the framework of consultations and coordination after Haftar’s visit to Russia a few days ago to discuss the possibility of Russian pressure toward lifting the UN arms embargo on Libya, which prohibits the transfer of military supplies into the country.

This was the Libyan military man’s second visit to Moscow. During his first visit, which took place in June, Haftar sought Moscow’s backing in his fight against militant groups.

It was reported that Russia had refused to supply arms to Haftar during to visit, however later reports revealed that Moscow had agreed on condition that a Russian military base could be setup in Libya.

Haftar’s upcoming visit to Cairo will be the fourth in a few months. He was in Egypt in a quick visit that lasted only several hours before heading to Russia last June. He later made two more visits to Egypt in July.

Sources exclusively told the New Arab last month that Egyptian military aircraft arrived in the Kharouba Airport, which is controlled by Haftar, carrying military equipment. This was not the first time that Egypt had sent military aid to the commander of the Libyan National Army (LNA), the sources added.

There are Egyptian military personnel who are present in Libya to support Haftar’s military operations without taking part in any field operations.