Libyan Al-Wefaq government forces announced their control of several important and advanced hubs in the vicinity of Tripoli Airport, and a neighborhood in the Qasr Bin Ghashir area south of the capital. This comes at a time when Moscow considered that external assistance to the parties to the conflict changed the balance of power on the ground.
A spokesman for the al-Wefaq government forces, Colonel Muhammad Qanunu, said that his forces had taken control of locations he described as important and advanced in the vicinity of Tripoli airport, and that they were chasing the forces of retired Major General Khalifa Hifter present there.
A military source from Al-Wefaq government forces confirmed that they are maintaining their positions in the Charisma axis south of Tripoli, after thwarting the attempt of Haftar's forces to restore their positions in that axis.
During the past two days, Al-Wefaq forces had taken control of large parts of the blenders axis, Ramleh and Ain Zara, south of Tripoli, after violent clashes with Haftar's forces.
Control and importance
In parallel field developments, Al-Wefaq forces announced their control over the Al-Kayikh neighborhood surrounding the Qasr Bin Ghashir area, south of the capital, Tripoli.
Mustafa al-Majei, spokesman for the "Barkan Al-Ghazib" operation, which is affiliated with the Al-Wefaq government, told Anatolia news agency that after taking control of the Al-Kayikh neighborhood, control of Qasr Bin Ghashir Palace was close.
The military spokesman confirmed that controlling Qasr Bin Ghashir means the collapse of the hubs south of Tripoli as a lifeline for the retired brigade's forces.
The Qasr Bin Ghashir area is about 26 km from Tripoli, and it is considered one of the main areas that Haftar forces depend on to supply its elements in the fighting axes south of Tripoli.
Al-Wefaq forces succeeded in controlling over the past few days, fighting axes and strategic camps south of Tripoli, notably the Hamza and Yarmouk camps.
Al-Jazeera correspondent Nasser Shedeed said that Haftar forces have been firing mortar shells heavily for three days on the areas of the Electricity Triangle in Ain Zara, and the axis of the mixers in the buildings where the Al-Wefaq forces holed up on Thursday.
He attributed the slow progress of the Al-Wefaq government forces in the progress to mine large numbers of houses and roads by Haftar's forces, noting that the dismantling of these mines takes time, before the Al-Wefaq forces complete their progress towards the south.
Power scales
Politically, the Russian Information Agency quoted Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova as saying on Friday that the situation in Libya is deteriorating, and that the cease-fire there is falling apart.
The Interfax news agency quoted the Russian spokeswoman as saying that external assistance to the parties to the conflict had changed the balance of power on the ground in Libya, adding that her country was continuing its contacts with all the conflicting Libyan parties.
It quoted Zakharova as saying that Russia insists on resolving the Libyan conflict through diplomatic means, considering that further delay threatens serious consequences.
For his part, Deputy Head of the Al-Wefaq government, Ahmed Maitiq, stressed that the agreements concluded between Tripoli and Ankara had a great impact on changing some of the balance of power on the ground.
This came in a speech delivered by the Libyan official, Thursday evening, during his participation in a discussion seminar via the Internet under the title "Libya after the conflict" organized by the "Atlantic Council", which is a research institution based in the American capital Washington.
The Libyan official also stressed that Russia and the UAE have no constructive plan for Libya except to destroy the government in Tripoli, noting that Libya, with Haftar, will be under dictatorial administration again.
On the other hand, the opposition German Green Party said on Thursday that Haftar forces used German military trucks equipped with Russian air defense systems.
The German party added that there is a lot of evidence that the UAE delivered these trucks to Haftar's forces, and thus violated the arms embargo in Libya.
This came in a statement by the Green Party foreign policy official Umed Nuripur, explaining that his party demanded the government of Chancellor Angela Merkel to clarify the circumstances of the UAE's delivery of Haftar German military trucks immediately and completely.
Haftar forces casualties
Hifter's forces continue to suffer heavy losses as a result of harsh strikes in the axes south of Tripoli and all the cities of the western coast, up to the borders with Tunisia, in addition to the strategic "Al-Wattia" base (west) and the towns of Badr and Tiji, and the city of Asaba in the western mountain (southwest of Tripoli).
With the support of Arab and European countries, Haftar's forces have launched a deadly assault since April 4, 2019, to take control of Tripoli, the internationally recognized seat of government, leaving civilians dead and injured, along with extensive material damage.
The Secretary-General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, has informed the Security Council of the killing of 58 civilians and the wounding of at least 190 others, as a result of the fighting in Libya since the beginning of April and until May 18.