Khalifa Haftar, the Military Commander of the Libyan National Army has announced that he is committed to a ceasefire deal with the United Nations-recognized government in Tripoli as long as its allied militia fighters pledge to sign on as well. Haftar is in Europe where he met with French President Emmanuel Macron as well as the German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
There have been a series of talks between Haftar and GNA leader Fayez al-Sarraj with temporary ceasefires being signed but collapsing due to militias allied to both sides violating them triggering retaliation. International partners have maintained that any form deal can only be achieved by involving both GNA and Haftar-led side seeing as he helped curtail Islamist militants in the large swathes of territory his forces control.
From its base in the east of the country, Haftar’s self-styled Libyan National Army has pushed toward Tripoli since April 2019, fighting the Government of National Accord (GNA) and its allied militias.
Libya has been in turmoil since the 2011 overthrow of longtime leader Muammar Gaddafi and has become a battleground for rival proxy forces, which has drawn in foreign powers. An administration backed by Haftar’s forces controls most of Libya’s east and south, while the GNA, led by al-Sarraj in Tripoli, holds a shrinking area in the west, including the capital.
