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Italy keeps troops in Libya despite Khalifa advance
ROME, April 9, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – Italy on Tuesday confirmed that it
would keep its military missions in Tripoli and Misrata despite the advance
of strongman Khalifa Haftar’s forces on the Libyan capital.
Miasit, launched in January 2018, will “continue in order to make
assistance activities in Libya more incisive and efficient”, the Italian
defence ministry said in a statement.
UN chief Antonio Guterres has appealed for an immediate halt to fighting
in Libya after Haftar’s forces claimed an airstrike on Tripoli’s only
functioning airport.
Thousands have fled violence in the capital city, according to the
United Nations, since Haftar launched a surprise assault last week which has
left dozens dead.
Italy’s Bilateral Mission of Assistance and Support in Libya “supports
Libyan authorities in their pacification and stabilisation activities in the
country and against human trafficking, smuggling and threats to security.”
No figures were provided for the current deployment but the mission has
previously included around 100 troops in Tripoli and 300 in Misrata, about
200 kilometres (130 miles) to the east.
Troops from former colonial power Italy are involved in “training and
technical and infrastructure assistance for Libyan security forces,” in
Tripoli, the statement said.
In Misrata, the troops provide security and assistance to a hospital
within a military academy for the UN-backed Government of National Accord.
The oil-rich northern African country has been rocked by violent power
struggles between an array of armed groups since the NATO-backed overthrow of
dictator Moamer Kadhafi in 2011.
The UN-backed Government of National Accord (GNA) controls the capital,
but its authority is not recognised by a parallel administration in the east
of the country, backed by Haftar.
BSS/AFP/RY/1820 hrs