By Olivier FourtPosted on 19-05-2019Modified on 19-05-2019 at 23:30
In Libya, the open delivery of some 30 armored vehicles by Turkey in the port of Tripoli is once again raising questions about the ability of European countries to enforce the UN embargo decided in 2011.
While the battle for control of the Libyan capital continues to rage between the forces of Marshal Haftar and those of Fayez al-Sarraj, about 30 armored vehicles arrived Saturday, May 18 at the port of Tripoli aboard the Amazon Giurgulesti . This is not the first time that the arms embargo decreed by the UN in 2011 has been violated.
As of 2014, eight used Mig-21 fighter jets were taken from an Egyptian Air Force base to be transferred to eastern Libya. But things are accelerating in 2016. According to a source close to French military intelligence, " the belligerents have started to run out of ammunition ". At the time, the fighting mainly took place against the Islamic State organization. " General Haftar's forces began to run out of air bombs (...) There were a lot of things in Kadhafi's warehouses in 2011, but the civil war and the illegal trade drained the arsenals in a few years. " , note then an observer of the file.
More or less direct support to belligerents
Complex networks sometimes involving foreign private companies are then set up to provide military equipment to belligerents. But this support is also more directly. The United Arab Emirates is quietly deploying on the basis of Al Khadim , between Benghazi and Al Marj, in the east of the country. AT 802 light attack aircraft, of UAE origin, but presumably managed by a private operator , are engaged on behalf of Marshal Haftar's force, known as the Libyan National Army (LNA).
France, which loses in the summer of 2016 three members of the DGSE action service in Libya, is forced in turn to recognize its involvement in the conflict alongside the strong man of Benghazi. Then it is the turn of Russia that, in 2017, begins to supply spare parts of Mig-23 fighters after the visit of Marshal Haftar on the Russian aircraft carrier Kuznetzov, who then sailed in the Mediterranean. Until recently, Chinese-born drones, Wing Loong, have reportedly been carrying out missions in the Tripoli region. These drones armed with missiles appear in the inventories of the Emirati and Egyptian armies, among others.
The delivery of weapons at sea is well known. Cargo ships from Turkey have repeatedly transported weapons to the port of Misrata. " Originally, Misrata is a former counter of the Ottoman Empire, says a source close to the file. There is a real closeness to the Turks and everyone is trying to do business . "
In the years following the fall of the Gaddafi regime, the Western navies are carefully watching the boats loaded with used cars or mechanical parts, which shuttles between Libya and Europe and in which weapons can easily be concealed. But shipments are becoming progressively larger and it is sometimes through whole containers that the weapons enter Libya before being redistributed on the coast.
Change of dimension
The national unity government (GNA) of Fayez el-Sarraj has received small arms, rockets, and often Turkish-made ammunition. The spectacular delivery of at least thirty Turkish armored vehicles to the benefit of the GNA marks a change of dimension. According to our information, these BMC Kirpi planned to resist the mines were immediately sent to the southern front of Tripoli. They will also serve to protect the cities of Zintan and Misrata.
" Images released Saturday on social networks show unarmed vehicles, but the guns intended to accommodate the machine guns seem to have been mounted on the roofs of vehicles. They were only covered with a green tarpaulin when the vehicles were unloaded, "reports one observer. In any case, these tanks are violating the arms embargo because their arrival has not been the subject of a prior declaration to the United Nations.
Footage after unloading Kirpi II MRAPs in #Tripoli port pic.twitter.com/hpKL2G4aUV
Mohamed Mansour 🇪🇬 (@Mansourtalk) May 18, 2019The Sophia mission, which since 2016 must contribute "to the implementation, on the high seas, of the UN arms embargo" in addition to its initial mission to fight against smuggling networks, has seen its mandate extended until September 2019. But since late March, no more European warships are assigned to it, which technically makes the interception of suspicious cargo ships almost impossible. By contrast, five European maritime patrol aircraft , including an Italian Predator drone, would be active. And it is hard to imagine that the ro-ro ship Amazon Giurgulesti was able to escape the cameras and sensors of these intelligence aircraft.
On the same subject
Libya: dozens of armored vehicles delivered to the RNG forces
Libya: Khalifa Haftar visits Cairo for the second time in less than a month
Libya: France "reaffirms" its "support" to Fayez el-Sarraj
Libyan Prime Minister Fayez el-Sarraj in Rome in search of support
Libya: Drian justifies French support for Haftar against terrorism
comments