The United Nations (UN) seems to have fears due to political unrest in the Sahel countries adjacent to the Libyan south. The UN fears come as military activities expand in the region, the traditional French dominance recedes. At the same time, Paris conflicts with its partners in Chad and Mali, growing Russian influence, and fears of the afghan suffer embodying in the region.
Before the UN General Assembly meetings running in New York until the end of next week, the UN Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, set out a black picture of the situation in the Sahel area. He expressed concern over the French retreat and Chad’s intention to move out its forces from the most dangerous zone, as he stated.
Inside the Libyan neighbourhood circle, coups and military unrests abound, which made it go through complicated political and security transformations, complicating the crisis in Libya. Last Tuesday, the armed forces in Sudan thwarted a military coup within hours.
Chad is also facing insurgents after the murder of its last President, Idriss Deby, who led the operations from the south of Libya. Meanwhile, the Chadian Transitional Council President entered a dispute with France over fears of withdrawing his forces and rapprochement with Russia. Mali experienced military chaos over the past months.
The situation in the region affects southern Libyan because of what is happening between Chad and its traditional partners. One of them is France, the country witnessing tensions with the Military Transitional Council, according to security sources. Chad is possibly following Mali’s footsteps as it withdrew half of its forces participating in the framework of the five Sahel countries.
On the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, the European Union Foreign minister, Josep Borell, warned that any presence of “Wagner” in Mali will significantly affect the Mali-EU relations. Also, Germany warned that such cooperation would push it to reconsider the participation of its army forces in Bamako.
It looks clear that the leader of Dignity Operation, General Khalifa Haftar, is trying to benefit from France’s trials to reposition in the Libyan south. But he also can no longer control the presence of “Wagner” mercenaries supported by the Russian government.
The confusion that Haftar is experiencing during this period made him take a practical step to prepare himself for running for the upcoming presidential elections in Libya. He issued a decree assigning Abdul-Razek Al-Nadori to be the commander of his militia in eastern Libya.
