World

France backing Haftar: Sarraj

April 24, 2019
Fayez Al-Sarraj
Fayez Al-Sarraj

LIBYAN Prime Minister Fayez Al-Sarraj, head of the internationally-recognized government in Tripoli, accused France on Wednesday of supporting his rival Khalifa Haftar whom he described as a “dictator”. The comments from Sarraj to the Liberation and Le Monde newspapers in France are his harshest criticism yet of Paris which has long been suspected of offering backing to Haftar, a former army field marshal based in eastern Libya.

Haftar, head of a self-styled Libyan National Army (LNA), has gradually expanded his territorial control and launched an offensive on April 4 on the capital Tripoli where Sarraj’s UN-recognized government is based.

“We are surprised that France does not support our government that is democratic, but supports a dictator,” Sarraj told the newspapers in comments published in French on Wednesday.

“When (French president) Emmanuel Macron called me, I warned him that public opinion was against France. We don’t want Libyans to hate France. France still has a positive and important role to play,” he said.

Speaking to Le Monde on Monday, Sarraj said France was partly to blame for Haftar’s offensive on Tripoli, which has led to 264 deaths and over 1,200 wounded.

“The disproportional support from France toward Haftar is what made him decide to take action and abandon the political process,” he said.

France has denied the accusations of supporting Haftar, saying it has contact with all the actors in war-ravaged Libya where a complex mosaic of militias and political factions are competing for advantage. But French diplomatic sources have raised concern about Sarraj’s apparent lack of influence and his alleged dependence on militias and the Muslim Brotherhood group.

He is backed by Qatar and Turkey, analysts say.

Haftar is increasingly seen by his allies, which include Russia and Egypt, as a bulwark against Islamists who gained a foothold after the 2011 uprising. — AFP


April 24, 2019
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