Under international pressure, the Government of Libyan National Union (GNA), recognized by the UN, and the forces of Marshal Khalifa Haftar accepted the entry into force of a ceasefire on Sunday in Libya. Hostilities began in April 2019 with the offensive of pro-Haftar forces to seize the capital Tripoli, headquarters of the GNA. Chronology of nine months of conflict.
Haftar orders the offensive
April 4, 2019: Khalifa Haftar orders his forces to "advance" towards Tripoli. The day before, his self-proclaimed Libyan National Army (ANL) had announced an offensive to "purge" western Libya "of terrorists".
April 5: ANL forces are repelled after briefly seizing Tripoli international airport, unused since its destruction in 2014 in combat.
"Volcano of Anger"
April 7: the spokesman of the GNA proclaims the beginning of a counter-offensive called "Volcano of anger". But at the same time, Russia is blocking the adoption of a Security Council declaration that has called on Haftar's forces to stop their advance.
April 8: The ANL claims an air raid against Mitiga airport (eastern suburbs of Tripoli), the only functional in the capital. She accuses the GNA of "allying itself with Islamist militias".
April 18: Paris refutes the accusations "completely unfounded" of the Libyan Ministry of the Interior according to which Paris supports the marshal Haftar. The following day, the White House revealed that Donald Trump met with Khalifa Haftar and recognized his "significant role (...) in the fight against terrorism and the securing of Libya's oil resources".
Backhand for Haftar
April 20: the fighting redoubled in violence after a counterattack by the GNA forces which were gaining ground, notably in the southern suburbs of Tripoli.
June 26: Forces loyal to the GNA deal a heavy blow to Haftar's troops by seizing Gharyan, their main rear base.
July 2: 53 people are killed and 130 injured in a raid on a migrant center in Tajoura, near Tripoli. The GNA attributes the attack to the denying pro-Haftar forces. At the end of July, the UN envoy, Ghassan Salamé, proposed a plan in three stages: cease-fire, international conference in Berlin and interlibyan conference.
Internationalization of the conflict
November 5: The American daily New York Times reports the deployment in Libya of nearly 200 mercenaries of a Russian private security company. Russia, suspected of supporting Haftar's troops, denies.
November 15: Washington calls on Marshal Haftar to stop his offensive.
December 10: a UN report pinpoints several companies and countries accused of violating the arms embargo decreed in 2011. It cites Turkey, support of the GNA, as well as Jordan and the United Arab Emirates, which support Haftar's troops.
December 12: Khalifa Haftar calls again his troops to advance towards the center of Tripoli. The GNA for its part announces the "implementation" of a security and military cooperation agreement signed on November 27 with Ankara.
January 2, 2020: Turkish parliament authorizes President Erdogan to deploy soldiers to Libya, which begins on 5.
January 6: pro-Haftar forces say they have captured Sirte, a city hitherto under the control of GNA forces.
Ceasefire under pressure from Moscow and Ankara
January 8: Ankara and Moscow call for a ceasefire from January 12 at midnight.
January 11: after having initially planned to continue its offensive, Haftar finally announces that it accepts this cease-fire, warning however that the response will be "severe in the event of violation of the truce by the opposite camp". A few hours later, the GNA in turn agreed, while emphasizing the "legitimate right" of its forces to "respond to any attack". Since the start of the offensive, more than 280 civilians and 2,000 combatants have been killed, while 146,000 Libyans have been displaced, according to the UN.
January 13: A Libyan official announces that the head of the GNA, Fayez al-Sarraj, and Marshal Haftar are expected in Moscow to sign a cease-fire agreement, announces a senior Libyan official. The head of the Russian contact group on Libya, Lev Dengov, says that the two rivals will have to determine "the terms of the future settlement in Libya, including the possibility of signing an agreement on the cease-fire and its details".
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