Egypt-UAE military reinforcements for Libya's Haftar forces

Well-informed sources revealed that military reinforcements have arrived from Egypt and the UAE to the forces of the retired Libyan general, Khalifa Haftar, who has been leading an army operation to storm the capital, Tripoli.

The sources confirmed the arrival of three Emirati military cargo planes to one of the airbases in eastern Libya, one of which was carrying militants coming from an Emirati naval base in the Horn of Africa.

Haftar’s forces have been using mercenaries from several countries, especially from Sudan, Chad and Russia, in their war to storm Tripoli.

Two other planes, which arrived through Egyptian airspace, were carrying a massive shipment of weapons and armoured vehicles, according to Al-Araby Al-Jadeed.

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The new reinforcements came in an attempt to change the balance of powers in the field in favour of Haftar, who visited Cairo, last Sunday, and whose forces suffered heavy losses in against the military of the Government of National Accord (GNA).

Through contacts with European parties, Cairo and Abu Dhabi are seeking to pass an international resolution to impose an air embargo over Libya to block the way in front of Turkish military intervention.

The sources explained that a meeting was held in Cairo included the Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi, his defence minister, Mohamed Zaki, the director of Egyptian General Intelligence, Major General Abbas Kamel, and the director of the Military Intelligence Service, Major General Khaled Megawer, to assess the situation in the Libyan scene.

Egypt fears the arrival of Turkish military forces in Libya in the upcoming days, which can strengthen the position of the GNA, and threaten Egypt’s national security, especially with its strained relations with Ankara that hosts a number of the most prominent oppositionists of Al-Sisi.