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Who is the failed coup d'état warlord Hafter and his LNA?

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-An old soldier which was worked under the CIA in past and a unit of mercenary groups from various countries- Failed Coup d'état organizer Hafter ordered to the LNA militias which are under his command, to attack the capital of Libya. Directly to the Tripoli, majority of Libyan people, which is under the control of the legitimate government recognized by the UN. Let's get to know these criminals more closer.

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Libya has recently become an important part of the Middle East agenda. There are violent clashes between the UN recognized legitimate Government of National Accord (UMH / GNA) troops and the militias under the command of the coup general Caliph Hafter for the control of the capital, Tripoli.

Finally, Hafter ordered the LNA militia “final attack to take over the capital", which is now under GNA control. But the siege of Tripoli, which has been unsuccessful for months, has turned into a fiasco in which Tarhana is about to undergo GNA control in these days.

The coup d'état Hafter, which is backed by countries such as France, Egypt and the UAE, has already stated that in 2018 and 2019 the final attack on Tripoli has begun and the city will be captured soon. But despite all these explanations and militia operations by LNA, Turkey and Qatar supported the legitimate government continues to keep cities under control.

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So who are the Caliph Haftar and the LNA militias under his control?

Haftar first appeared in September 1964 as a youngster entering military high school in Libya. Hafter was attending the same military high school as Muammar Gaddafi, who had started his education a year earlier.

Gaddafi graduated from high school as a combat officer in August 1965, and in 1966 went to the United Kingdom to receive training in the Air Force. In the same year, Hafter graduated as an artillery officer.

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He took his first important post during the Libya-Chad war between 1978 and 1987. Hafter, who controlled the troops during the border clashes, was taken prisoner in 1987 in the battle of the Valley Dum, which had a key importance.

Hafter, who was captured in spite of the number of superior units and numerous weapons and ammunition, was scolded by Gaddafi for a long time because of this failure and some suspicions.

This is where the story of the LNA controlled by Hafter begins. Along with Hafter, some 2,000 Libyan troops were captured by the US and French-backed Chad army. From these captured troops, the United States formed a Libyan National Army (LNA) - the aim was to fight the Gaddafi against the LNA and thus ’liberate’ Libya.

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The coup d'état Hafter accepted without hesitation the US offer and the CIA service. He was brought to the United States in 1990 and worked for the CIA for many years.

In this context, he contributed to the assassination and coup attempt against Gaddafi in 1996. MI6 and CIA-backed bomb attacks on Gaddafi's convoy, but Gaddafi survived.

Then he returned to Libya in 2011 and played an important role in the uprising against Gaddafi. The US continued to invest in Hafter after Gaddafi's overthrow - an important part of this investment was PR activities.

In February 2015, Hafter took a tour of critical countries in an airplane owned by Erik Prince, the founder of the US security company Blackwater, known for its massacres in Iraq. The aim of this tour was to establish close relations between Hafter and Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt and Israel and to gain support from these countries. In addition, "The New Yorker" magazine about Hafter published articles containing propaganda.

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Particularly backed by France and Egypt, Haftar, who worked under the CIA for years and then received assistance from Saudi Arabia and the UAE, now awaiting support from Russia, is attacking the capital city of Tripoli, controlled by the LNA militias and the legitimate government. In order to win the support of Russia, Wagner Group provided a huge amount of cash flow through the UAE from 2018.

At this point: truth about the LNA's structure is important, - which are propagated as a regular and disciplined army by Hafter's supporters -


In addition, the LNA militias shoots randomly under the influence of drugs and ignores the lives of civilians. On the other hand, the images of the tortured bodies of the killed people appeared on social media many times.


Hafter's troops have some local militia forces from Garyan and Tarhuna. One of these militia groups is the unit affiliated with the Kani brothers from Tarhuna. Since 2015, the militias at the disposal of the Kani brothers have killed hundreds of people, including all families, in order to gain control over Tarhuna.

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Another militia that commits terrible murders and crimes against civilians is Muhammad al-Shtiwi.

Hafter's el-Shtiwi is known for its massacres and torture of civilians in Aceylat. In July, GNA troops neutralized this criminal, clashes in Tripoli.

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Another example of militias in the LNA is the Borg al-Nasr group from Zintan. This group, led by Hafter supporter , Abdelmonem Dardira, is known for kidnapping Libyan deputies in 2014.

Although France and other Hafter supporter countries try to portray the LNA as a regular army, the above examples and much more reveal the truth.

The UN-recognized GNA troops are defending the capital, Tripoli, against the LNA, while civilians are being bombed by airplanes, intensively by LNA MIGs.

Because France and the UAE(who served in Libya as France's proxy arm) led to a bloody massacre in Libya: The KIRPI and VURAN MRAPS (produced in Turkey) has been the subject of military support to GNA. In addition, air support is provided with Bayraktar TB2 tactical UAVs.

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Frankly all the result of this process, Legitimate government is now issued a call for military support to Algeria , Italy, UK and Turkey, according to relevant agreements.

(end of first chapter)

---For original article and more , please visit EHA Medya website ---
 
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The key militias who fight alongside Haftar in Libya

Although warlord Khalifa Haftar has bought several ragtag militias, here's a quick look into the three most crucial fighting groups that fuel the self-proclaimed field marshal's war against UN-backed government in Tripoli.
Libyan Warlord Khalifa Haftar launched an extensive and brutal military campaign against the UN-backed government in Tripoli in April this year and he continues to wage war for the power grab.

Haftar's so-called Libyan National Army (LNA) claims to have 80,000 fighters, but according to the Italian Institute for International Political Studies it has just 7,000 regular forces and 18,000 auxiliary forces.

The study also says that Haftar's militia is full of criminals and mercenaries, a far cry from Haftar's description of his men being a disciplined and professional force.

As per the report, one of his senior commanders Mahmoud al Werfalli is a fugitive, dodging an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court.

While Haftar failed to invade the capital city Tripoli on two occasions, the conflict recently took a new turn with Russian mercenaries from Wagner siding with Haftar. Apart from Wagner, Haftar has managed to rope in several dozen militias full of ragtag bandits and criminals.

Here's a quick insight into the three main fighting groups Haftar is heavily dependent on.
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Wagner Group

According to several reports, Wagner Group is linked to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The group's presence was first reported in eastern Ukraine, where its mercenaries fought alongside pro-Russian forces, who'd revolted against the Eurocentric government of Ukraine.

Headed by Yevgeny Prigozhin who is also known as former ‘Hotdog Seller’ and ‘Putin’s Chef’ for having catering contracts with Kremlin, Wagner Group has earned notoriety for being a proxy front for Putin's wars in the Middle East and Europe and Prigozhin its enabler.

Wagner Group has started deploying mercenaries on the front lines of the Libyan war following Russia’s decisive military intervention in Syria where hundreds of Wagner’s mercenaries were reportedly killed during clashes with the US forces as they attempted to seize an oil refinery in Syria in 2018.

According to Libya’s UN-backed government, more than 800 mercenaries from Wagner are present in Libya, fighting for Haftar.

The US Assistant Secretary for the Affairs of the Near East, David Schenker stated that the US is to work with European countries to place sanctions on Wagner, citing “the spectre of large-scale civilian killings" by the Wagner Group.
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Janjaweed Militia - Sudanese Rapid Support Forces (RSF)

Janjaweed is an armed group from South Sudan. Former Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir converted officially Janjaweed Militia into the Rapid Support Forces under the command of the National Intelligence and Security Services. They were used to defeat rebel groups in the country in 2013.

Human Rights Watch’s report revealed that the RSF militias have committed war crimes, rapes, displaced civilians in 2014 and 2015 in Darfur.

In July, reports emerged that the first unit of RSF militia arrived in Libya in order to support Haftar for his operation to capture Tripoli. At least 1,000 militias have reportedly arrived in the oil-rich country.

RSF is also led by a warlord named Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, also known as Hemedti.

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Salafist Madkhali Group

Although Haftar claims he's fighting against extremist religious groups, he's closely working with the Salafist Madkhali militias, a fighting force full of fundamentalists who are supported by the UAE and Saudi.

There are other Salafist armed groups linked with Haftar such as the Subul al-Salam and the al-Wadi Brigade. Both groups have gained influence in Libya following the end of Gaddafi’s term in 2011.
 
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Army official: Russian Wagner Group mercenaries have started pulling out of Tripoli frontlines
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The commander of backup forces of the Libyan Army under the command of the Presidential Council, Nasser Ammar, has confirmed that many of Wagner Group mercenaries have started pulling out from the frontlines in southern Tripoli.

Ammar told Anadolu Agency that they had depicted helicopters transporting Russian mercenaries from Wagner Group to Al-Jufra airbase, adding that most of the mercenary fighters had been transported, while some remain on the frontlines to secure a safe withdrawal of the rest of mercenaries.

He added that there are currently over 500 Russian mercenaries on Salah Al-Deen, Yarmouk, Khallatat, and Abu Salim frontlines, plus more than 1000 Janjaweed mercenaries all recruited by Khalifa Haftar to weigh the battle for his side.

"The withdrawal of Russian mercenaries came after the meeting of Putin and Erdogan." Ammar explained.

He added that Haftar is not fighting with a Libyan army but with a militia of multinational mercenaries - Egyptians, Emiratis, Russians, Janjaweed and others.

Ammar also explained that Haftar is working on pushing Wagner Group mercenaries into densely populated areas of Abu Salim and Salah Al-Deen to lead guerrilla warfare as the mercenaries are good at it, but - he added - Volcano of Rage Operation forces managed to repel this plot.https://www.libyaobserver.ly/news/a...s-have-started-pulling-out-tripoli-frontlines
 
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