Turkey resumed sending Syrian mercenaries to Libya
Turkey has resumed sending Syrian mercenaries to Libya despite local and international demands to withdraw all foreign forces to stabilize the country before the elections at the top of the year.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) revealed Friday that the Turkish government sent on March 8 a batch of 380 mercenaries to Libya, while another group of fighters is being prepared to be sent to Turkey with monthly salaries of $500.
There are currently about 7,000 mercenaries from the armed factions loyal to Turkey in Libya, and there are intentions to stay groups of them there to guard the Turkish bases, consistent with the observatory.
Many mercenaries also don’t want to return to Syria, but rather shall attend Europe via Italy.
Turkey sent about 20,000 Syrian mercenaries to Libya after signing the memorandum of understanding on security and military cooperation with the govt of National Accord (GNA), headed by Fayez al-Sarraj.
As a result, thousands of Syrian mercenaries were dispatched to Libya to support GNA forces in their fight against the Libyan National Army (LNA) led by marshal Khalifa Haftar.
Following the ceasefire agreement last October, Turkey withdrew some thousand mercenaries, but it maintains its military presence in Al-Watiya airbase and Misrata base, additionally to the joint military command center in Tripoli.
Meanwhile, Deputy Presidential Council chief Abdullah al-Lafi said his country must re-evaluate its diplomacy , and differentiate between the forces that supported the establishment of the civil state and people that wanted suppression and marginalization.
Lafi was speaking during a symposium organized by the middle for Political, Economic and Social Studies (SITA) in Ankara entitled “a deeper understanding of the policies of external players towards Libya.”
He stressed that a lot of can’t understand the policies of the international players towards Libya, because the politics and media alter them for his or her own interests.
