Looking forward to joining Sarah Brett and Nihal Arthanayake on Afternoon Edition tomorrow at 3 p.m.  The programme is live from the flight deck of the Royal Navy’s newest Aircraft Carrier, HMS Prince of Wales as it is being put together in Rosyth.  I shall be joining a panel of former military servicemen discussing Defence costs and how the Aircraft Carriers will be used.

https://www.waterstones.com/book/belfast-to-benghazi/rupert-wieloch/9781861515667

After tracing the causes of the current situation in Libya, I had a cautiously optimistic discussion with Dermot Murnaghan about future prospects, based on the positive reception given to the new UN Head of Mission and to the Foreign Secretary’s visit to Benghazi yesterday.

Great praise is due to the members of the Red Crescent who have been excavating the grave discovered full of fighters from the Benghazi Revolutionaries’ Shoura Council and their allies.  It is a thankless but necessary task to rebury them, with respect, in Hawari to start the reconciliation process.

It is sad to read that seven members of the White helmets were shot dead yesterday in an area controlled by an Islamist group linked to al Qaida.  I met some of the White Helmets when they narrowly missed out on the Nobel Peace Prize last year.  My deep condolences are passed to their families.  This provides further evidence that the victims of Aleppo have been abandoned by the very people who encouraged them to rebel in 2011.

Saif Al-Islam Qaddafi has joined the criticism of the Italian naval deployment in Libyan waters.  Allegedly he has said that Italy has violated Libyan sovereignty and is trying re-colonise the country.  This will be the sentiment of many of the Libyans I met in 2011.  They knew they needed assistance, but were unwilling to provide western military troops with the legal protocols that other countries typically allow.  This makes it very difficult to help Libya move forward and re-engage with the international community.  See page 248 of Belfast to Benghazi for the challenge I faced in seeking a Status of Forces Agreement with the Transitional Government.

http://www.waterstones.com/book/belfast-to-benghazi/rupert-wieloch/9781861515667

The reported withdrawal of the al Amu militia from Sabratha this weekend could be a pivotal moment in Libya.  Sabratha has been one of the 3 ISIS footholds in Libya and is the main launching area for illegal migrants attempting to enter Europe.   There is much to play for because it controls the main route between Tripoli and Tunisia and sits next to the Zawiyah Oil Refinery.

It is claimed the ousting force is connected to General Haftar’s Libyan National Army.  Will this be the start of the LNA’s advance across Tripolitania, or will there be an Islamist backlash this week?

Our examination of Sabratha and the western coastal towns in 2011 is covered in Chapter 6 of Belfast to Benghazi.

http://www.waterstones.com/book/belfast-to-benghazi/rupert-wieloch/9781861515667

 

 

This week I am updating audiences at the War and Peace Festival in Kent about the latest situation in Libya.

What has happened to the family of the Manchester bomber? What are the challenges facing the new Head of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya? Will Russia and Putin fill the vacuum left by the West when they pulled out of the country? How important is General Haftar? How big a threat is ISIS? How do we solve the migration crisis, given the perceived failings of Operation Sophia.

https://warandpeacerevival.com/visitors/authors-pavilion/

Afriqiyah Airways have re-started flights to and from Benghazi’s main airport and launched services to Zintan and Mitiga in the past few days. This is another sign of light at the end of the security tunnel and economic opportunity in Libya.

In 2011, Special Forces destroyed Gadhafi’s Sukhoi interceptor and ground attack aircraft at Benina, which saved many lives.  See chapter 6 of Belfast to Benghazi.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Belfast-Benghazi-Untold-Challenges-War/dp/1861515669

Tripoli International has received its first flight since the wanton destruction in 2014 closed the airport.

Several Libyan militias have controlled this important prize since Moqtar al-Aktar captured it during the revolution.  Now the Presidential Guard has secured it for the recognised government, the next step is for international aircraft to return, which would be a significant indicator of progress.

See page 254 of Belfast to Benghazi to read about my first visit to the airport soon after it was captured by the Zintan Brigade in 2011.

https://www.waterstones.com/book/belfast-to-benghazi/rupert-wieloch/9781861515667

Mirroring the Iraqi Army progress in Mosul, the LNA is clearing Islamic militants from Benghazi and has advanced from Suq-al-Hout, which was captured on Friday.  Many civilians wish to return to their homes, but there are undiscovered booby traps among the residences, so  they will have to wait until the de-mining teams finish their work.

Recognizing recent progress, the UAE deputy chief of staff Major General Eisa Saif Al-Mazrouei visited the LNA over the weekend.  It does look like the fractured eastern part of Libya is becoming more cohesive, but will this lead to a greater division with the West?

See Chapter 6 of Belfast to Benghazi for an understanding of the historic tensions between Cyrenaica and Tripolitania.

https://www.waterstones.com/book/belfast-to-benghazi/rupert-wieloch/9781861515667