Libya: dead in Tripoli, and a Turkish-Russian agreement to continue talks to resolve the crisis

Russia and Turkey agreed today to continue their contacts regarding the situation in Libya, including contributing to a speedy settlement of the crisis. While Egypt held talks with Russia and Germany and the UN envoy to Libya, Ghassan Salama, in an effort to reach a "comprehensive settlement" of the crisis.

This diplomatic move coincides with the continued bombardment of aircraft of retired Major General Khalifa Haftar in areas around the Libyan capital, where the military media of the Al-Wefaq government announced today the killing of four civilians and the wounding of three others as a result of a raid by a Haftar aircraft in Tajoura, east of the capital.

A statement issued by the Russian Foreign Ministry stated that Russian and Turkish experts held consultations yesterday in the capital, Moscow, headed by the Russian side, representative of the Russian President in the Middle East and Africa, Mikhail Bogdanov, while the Turkish delegation was headed by Deputy Foreign Minister Sadat Onal.

"After exchanging views, an agreement was reached regarding the continuation of the discussions on the problem in Libya, including providing possible assistance to settle the crisis there," the statement added.

On the other hand, Egypt held talks with Russia and Germany and the UN envoy, Ghassan Salama, on the settlement efforts in Libya.

This came during phone calls made by the Egyptian Foreign Minister, Sameh Shoukry, with his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, German National Security Adviser Jan Hacker, and the UN envoy, according to a statement by the Egyptian Foreign Ministry.

The contacts covered - according to the statement - "the latest regional developments and issues of the region, foremost of which is the Libyan issue, while stressing the importance of working towards avoiding any aggravation of the situation there."

She also stressed the necessity of pushing forward efforts to reach a comprehensive settlement to the Libyan crisis, including Berlin's political track, in a way that contributes to restoring security and stability, according to the text of the statement.

On the other hand, the US embassy in Libya called what it described as the "brave Libyan leadership" to protect the country's independence rather than opening its doors to foreign exploitation.

"Washington is committed to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of this country," the embassy said - in a tweet on Twitter on the occasion of Libya's independence day, and called on the Libyan parties to stop the escalation and take serious steps towards resolving the conflict.

Stumbling attack
It is noteworthy that the forces of retired Major General Khalifa Hifter have waged, since the fourth of last April, a faltering attack to control the capital, Tripoli, the seat of the internationally recognized government of national reconciliation.

This attack aborted the efforts of the United Nations to hold a dialogue conference between the Libyans in Berlin, as part of an international road map to address the conflict in this oil-rich country.

The exact date of the conference was not specified, and if media reports say it will be held next January, after it was postponed more than once due to differences between the ten invited countries (the United States, Russia, China, Britain and France, in addition to Germany, Turkey, Italy, Egypt and the UAE).

And criticized the supervisors of the conference for excluding the conflicting Libyan parties, and some of the actors in the file, such as Algeria, Tunisia and Qatar.