Mediaboss Marketing

The Libyan National Army (LNA) is fighting an all-out war against Turkey as it competes to wrest control of Libya from the Turkish-backed and U.N.-recognised government in Tripoli, the LNAs spokesman said.

The LNA is fighting the Turkish army with all of its land, sea and electronic means, Syrian government-affiliated news site Al Masdar News quoted the LNAs spokesman, Ahmed al-Mismari, as saying at a press conference.

Turkey signed a deal with the Tripoli government in November that has seen Turkish soldiers deployed to Libya, where shipments of Turkish military hardware and drones have helped the capital withstand the assault from the eastern-based LNA.

International media reported that Turkey had also flown in thousands of its Syrian rebel allies to bolster Tripolis manpower.

The Syrian mercenaries in Libya are undergoing great losses, and Turkish intelligence is ready to publish any fake news with the aim of distracting them from their heavy losses, said Mismari at the press conference.

Continued here:
Libyan National Army fighting all-out war against Turkey - spokesman - Ahval

TUNIS -Western Libya is currently the scene of rapid military developments and surprising moves that might redraw the map of the balance of power on the ground.

The previous status quo was shaken by recent multipronged attacks on the coastal cities of western Libya by Islamist militias and other Turkey-backed mercenary groups that have enabled Fayez al-Sarraj and his government to score limited victories in time and space.

Tunisian and Libyan military sources revealed to The Arab Weekly that Libyas western coastal strip witnessed two days of major military movements, especially in the town of Rigdalin, where hundreds of military vehicles and equipment were gathered, along with thousands of militia members loyal to the Islamist-aligned Sarraj government.

The build-up coincided with the movement of large military convoys equipped with heavy artillery towards the town of Jameel and al-Assa Military Base near the Tunisian border, which means that the town of Rigdalin is now serving as a concentration and mobilisation centre for militias and mercenaries given its strategic location.

The town lies on the Libyan coast at about 120km west of the capital, Tripoli, 10km south-east of the town of Jameel, and about 10km north-east of the city of Zuwara.

On the other side, the Libyan National Army (LNA) forces, led by Field-Marshal Khalifa Haftar, began re-organising its ranks and pushing important military reinforcements to the western coastal region. A large mobilisation operation was monitored in the city of Rajban. It came after Haftar met with the chiefs of staff of the land, sea and air forces devoted to assessing the military developments in the western region and planning response measures to any new attack on Watiya airbase.

These mobilisation activities on both sides herald a new round of military confrontations in the region, amid expectations that Islamist militias loyal to Sarraj, backed by mercenaries sent by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, are planning to launch a new attack on Watiya airbase, located 140km south-west of the capital, Tripoli.

These scenarios are justified on the ground by the fact that Watiya base was a tough nut to crack for the Sarraj government and its militias, despite their launching repeated attacks on the base for nearly two weeks with Turkish drones.

Officials of the Sarraj government said that their militias are now positioned on the outskirts of the base and waiting for orders to attack.

It seems that the Sarraj government, encouraged by its militias progress in the western coastal strip, wants to move quickly to take Watiya and thus gain complete control of western Libya. A couple of days ago, Sarraj vowed to take over the base. He made those statements after meeting with a number of his military officers, including Osama al-Juwaili, commander of the western region and the joint operations room, Muhammad al-Haddad, commander of the central region and Major General Abdul Basit Marwan, commander of the Tripoli region.

Some media outlets affiliated with the Sarraj government leaked reports that during that meeting a new plan was prepared by Juwaili to recapture the Watiya military base before the month of Ramadan, thereby ensuring control of the entire western coastal strip, and along the borders with Tunisia, especially the two land crossings Ras Jedir and Al-Dhiba/Wazan.

However, Libyan military sources raised questions about the accuracy of the leaks and considered them a new ploy to divert the LNA attention from the real goal of the current military moves. The sources pointed out that the closest and most likely target is the city of Tarhuna, which is still seen as a gaping hole in the governments plans to gain control of the western coastal strip.

The head of the Consultative State Council, Khaled al-Meshri, a leader in the Justice and Construction Party, the political arm of the Muslim Brotherhood in Libya, confirmed this hypothesis. He stated that the government controls 500km of the coast and is going to liberate the remaining towns such as Tarhuna." In previous media statements, Meshri said the military developments in the coastal strip give new importance to redrawing the geopolitical map of Libya."

Observers were not surprised by Sarraj government officials' newfound confidence. They linked it to ground developments brought about by increased Turkish involvement in the area. There has been a major influx of Turkish mercenaries, weapons and equipment over the past weeks, and Turkish officers are now running the operations. For all practical purposes, the battle is now directly between the LNA and Turkey.

Libyan political analyst Faraj Zidan said that the battle is now taking place between the army forces, led by Field-Marshal Khalifa Haftar, and the Turkish intelligence services, which are now leading the forces affiliated with the Government of National Accord." He added in television statements broadcast April 14 that the Libyans are now dealing directly with a Janissary force that includes a group or combination of factions, many of which are non-Libyan.

During the past few weeks, the influx of Turkish military elements into Libya under various labels, such as advisers and military experts, has accelerated, along with the influx of intelligence officers. The role of Turkish SADAT International Defence Consultancy Inc. and its mercenaries in the battles waged in the vicinity of Tripoli and the western region is now out in the open.

Jemai Guesmiis a Tunisian writer.

This article was originally published in The Arab Weekly.

Read the original post:
Turkey-backed forces alter balance of power in Libya | Jemai Guesmi - Middle East Online

CAIRO Libya's east-based military forces firing into residential neighborhoods of the country's besieged capital with heavy weapons killed three civilians on Friday, including an elderly man and a teenager, according to Tripoli health officials.

"The humanitarian situation is catastrophic, terrifying, really," said health ministry official Amin al-Hashemi.

Despite appeals for a freeze in the fighting so that authorities can confront the coronavirus pandemic, "the shelling has not stopped for hours, it is only increasing," he said.

On Friday, artillery rounds crashed into houses across from the prominent Royal Health Clinic in southern Tripoli, killing a 16-year-old boy and wounding his mother and two younger brothers, aged 12 and 8, said health ministry spokesman Malek Merset. In the Souk al-Juma neighborhood of Tripoli, one man was killed when a Grad rocket struck his home, and four others wounded, including a woman, he added.

Meanwhile, in a western Tripoli neighborhood, a 70-year-old man was killed and four members of the same family wounded when shells hit grocery stores and surrounding homes, said al-Hashemi.

The fighting over Tripoli erupted last April, when forces under the east-based commander Khalifa Haftar attacked the U.N.-backed government in the capital, trying to seize the city. In recent weeks, Hifter's forces have escalated their use of Grad rockets and artillery shells in Tripoli's densely populated neighborhoods, which by nature cannot be fired precisely and place civilians at grave risk.

The intensifying assault drew condemnation from the United Nations, where spokesman Stephane Dujarric appealed for a cease-fire on humanitarian grounds to slow the spread of the virus. The majority of Libya's 49 infections have been reported in Tripoli and the western city of Misrata.

The U.N.-backed government, which controls just a corner of the country's west, imposed a lock-down on Friday in its most sweeping anti-virus measure yet, warning that violators who venture out after curfew hours would be penalized. But while the virus may lurk in streets and public spaces, Tripoli residents increasingly do not feel safe in their homes either.

"A humanitarian pause is urgently required," said Dujarric, noting that the U.N. had recorded at least 131 civilian casualties, including 64 deaths, in the first three months of this year.

article continues below

Read the original:
Libya's east-based forces hit Tripoli civilian area, three dead - Stars and Stripes

CLAIMA graphic video of multiple bodies floating ashore is being circulated on WhatsApp with a claim that bodies of those who died due to Covid-19 infection are being thrown into the sea. The text shared with the video warns people against consuming fish or any other seafood as the consumer may end up contracting coronavirus.'; var randomNumber = Math.random(); var isIndia = (window.geoinfo && window.geoinfo.CountryCode === 'IN') && (window.location.href.indexOf('outsideindia') === -1 ); console.log(isIndia && randomNumber A loose translation of the Hindi text shared with the video reads, Do not eat any seafood because the corpses of corona patients have been thrown into the sea. The same bodies will be eaten by fish so when you consume the same fish, think what will happen to you.

Heres the screengrab of the query Times Fact Check received on its WhatsApp number. The reader wanted to know if the claim was true.

Here is the original post:
FAKE ALERT: Old video from Libya shared claiming bodies of Covid-19 patients are thrown into sea - Times of India

By Sami Zaptia.

(OCHA).

London, 15 April 2020:

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said that if Libya is to have any chance against COVID-19, the ongoing conflict and attacks on critical civilian infrastructure must come to an immediate halt. The assertion came in its situation report published Monday.

Of Libyas officially confirmed Coronavirus cases (35), the report said that the majority are in Benghazi, Misrata and Tripoli. It said that the World Health Organization (WHO) continues to work with the Ministry of Health (MoH), the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and other authorities to ensure early identification of cases and their contacts, isolation of cases and quarantine of contacts.

Libyas immediate needs

The report said that Libyas immediate needs include support to rapid response teams managed by NCDC, procurement and distribution of personal protective equipment (PPE), establishment of labs and procurement of lab diagnostic kits and supplies, establishment and support to isolation sites and wards (within or outside public hospitals), provision of training, health education and awareness materials.

The ongoing conflict

Conflict continues to impact civilians and civilian infrastructure, increasing the risks of COVID-19 and hampering effects to fight the threat. In recent weeks, around 745 families (3,700 individuals) have been forced to flee their homes, particularly in Abu Sleem Municipality, and from the neighbourhoods of Salah Eddin and Al Hadba due to the deteriorating situation. The majority of those displaced moved to safer areas within Abu Sleem or to adjacent Hai Al Andalus, Tajura, Suq, Al Jumaa and Janzour. Most displaced families are reportedly staying with host families and in rented accommodation. Priority needs in displacement locations include food and non-food items, water, sanitation, hygiene, and health assistance.

The shelling of medical facilities

On 6 April 2020, as a result of heavy shelling in Tripoli, the Al Khadra General Hospital was hit, injuring at least one health worker and damaging the fully functioning 400-bed medical facility. All patients were evacuated from the hospital with the exception of emergency cases. The hospital was one of the potential COVID-19 assigned health facilities. Since the beginning of the year, there has been at least eight recorded conflict-related incidents affecting field hospitals, health care workers, ambulances and medical supplies, killing at least four people and injuring 12 others.

The water shutdown

On the same day, the water valves of the Man-Made River Project were shut down by an armed group in the southern region of Shwerif in Tripoli. Residents of the Greater Tripoli area and cities of the western region (particularly Tripoli,Tahouna, Bani Walid and Gharyan), home to more than 2 million people including 600,000 children, have been without water. These water cuts have coincided with power outages affecting many parts of western Libya and are likely to further result in disruptions to water flow in highly populated areas. Water systems in Libya have already been badly damaged as a result of the ongoing conflict. If Libya is to have any chance against COVID-19, the ongoing conflict and attacks on critical civilian infrastructure must come to an immediate halt.

On dealing with Covid-19

Strong prevention measures (border closures, restricted movement, closures of schools, restaurants, etc.) remain in place, some of which have been extended. Furthermore, only two testing laboratories (Tripoli and Benghazi) are capable of COVID-19 diagnostics and none in the South, creating significant challenges in identifying the actual number of cases in the country. Information on designated locations and hospitals assigned to care for COVID-19 patients consistently changes, largely due to refusals from communities or armed groups in those areas to have health facilities used for COVID19 treatment, as well as health workers refusals to care for COVID-19 patients because of insufficient protection, supplies and equipment.

The MoH has recently issued a decree transferring the management and financing of health services to municipalities. However, health services were already limited in municipalities and while they are on the front lines of combatting the pandemic, they lack funding, capacity and equipment to respond. Furthermore, many points of entry, particularly land borders, are not fully secured and lack capacity and resources for testing and quarantining. With up to 90 per cent of public health care services closed in some areas and vaccination services severely disrupted, the maintenance of essential health care services has been added as a new (ninth) pillar to the COVID-19 Health Sector Response Plan.

The ETS-managed Common Feedback Mechanism, which is supporting the NCDC by serving as a COVID-19 information channel, has so far received more than 9,500 COVID-related calls. During 5 to 11 April, calls doubled from the previous week. The majority of callers requested information while others wanted to confirm their symptoms.

Market shortages and price spikes

the report said that its market research partner, REACH, conducted a Rapid Market Assessment in Libya to provide a brief city-level overview of market functionality, with a focus on shortages and price spikes for basic food and hygiene items. The information was gathered between 30 March and 1 April from key informants in 21 cities across Libya.

According to the assessment, 48 per cent of assessed cities reported food shortages and 86 per cent of assessed cities reported food price spikes. Shortages of basic food items, such as eggs, vegetables and wheat products, were most frequently reported. Food prices spiked in the majority of assessed cities directly after COVID-19 prevention measures were implemented, with some locations reporting temporary price increases of 500-900 per cent. In some cities in the eastern and southern regions, authorities reportedly intervened to correct price hikes.

The report said that ongoing clashes, along with COVID-19 restriction measures, continue to hamper humanitarian access and the free movement of medical and other humanitarian personnel, as well as humanitarian assistance across the country. Many requests for movements between cities and for release of items in customs require individual authorizations to be negotiated with multiple parties.

It said that OCHA continues to advocate with authorities, including at the highest levels, for immediate and unrestricted humanitarian access for humanitarian personnel and assistance, for both ongoing humanitarian programming and COVID-19 response activities. This includes the removal of all restrictions and immediate importation of health supplies both for the COVID-19 response and other humanitarian assistance.

Libyas Coronavirus: A further 9 new cases announced yesterday

Water expected to return to Tripoli within 48 hours

The rest is here:
''If Libya is to have any chance against COVID-19, the ongoing conflict and attacks on critical civilian infrastructure must come to an immediate...