The Grand Mufti of Libya, Sheikh Sadiq al-Ghariani, on Friday called on all Libyans to unite and fight against the Russians who came to the eastern part of the country from Syria, from where they fled after the overthrow of the regime of Bashar al-Assad.
Mufti al-Ghariani argued in his weekly program broadcast on Tanasuh TV that these Russians are not civilians, but fighters who must be driven out of Libya. He confirmed that the Russians have significantly increased their presence in Libya since the beginning of December, where they are importing military equipment.
The Russians, who had been supporting Assad in Syria for years, were received in eastern Libya by the warlord, General Khalifa Haftar and his sons. They joined the Russian mercenaries from the former Wagner Group, already established in Benghazi and Tobruk.
Mercenaries from the Wagner GroupAP/East News
“Libyans in the eastern, southern and western regions of the country must oppose their presence, take up arms and fight them,” said the mufti, who in the Islamic tradition officially interprets Muslim law for the needs of state institutions and private individuals.
A day earlier, on Thursday, the Prime Minister of the Government of National Accord, Abd al-Hamid Dubai, reacted to the presence of armed Russians in Libya. He said that he does not agree to the introduction of any Russian military equipment or Russian troops coming from Syria into his country, which will be fought by his government as foreign. He also warned that he “will not accept Libya as an international battlefield.”
Russians move to Libya
After the overthrow of the regime of Bashar al-Assad on 8 December, Russia sent transport planes from Syria to bases in eastern Libya with air defence equipment, including S-400 and S-300 radars, weapons, personnel and other military equipment.
Haftar himself never referred to this information. Russian mercenaries from the Wagner Group have been stationed in the eastern part of Libya for years, and Russia is seeking permission from Haftar to build a naval base in the port of Tobruk near the border with Egypt.
Earlier this week, CNN quoted unnamed U.S. officials as saying that Russian warships were already moving from the Syrian base of Tartus to Libya.
A country in chaos
Since the overthrow of dictator Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, Libya has been divided into two parts - the western part, which is administered from Tripoli by the Government of National Accord, and the eastern part, informally managed from Benghazi by Haftar. In February 2021 in Geneva, Libyan tribal and political leaders elected Dubai as the first prime minister of all of Libya since 2014. He was supposed to head the interim government until the parliamentary elections, which were to be held in December 2021, but were canceled after quarrels between the feuding parties.
Libya. Grand mufti calls for a fight against the Russians - TVN24
