Sources reported the withdrawal of Russian mercenaries from the city of Sirte, amid indications that the forces of the Libyan National Accord government may launch a military operation to recover them from the forces of retired Major General Khalifa Hifter despite the "red line" set by Cairo, while Russia expressed support for a possible Egyptian military intervention in Libya.
A Libyan government source told Al-Jazeera that the militants of the Russian Wagner Company withdrew on Tuesday from Sirte (450 km east of Tripoli) towards the eastern oil ports of Hilal, which are under the control of Haftar's forces.
For its part, Libyan military sources told the island that Wagner's mercenaries had dismantled air defense radars from an area in Sirte.
According to the Libyan government source, the Russian militants have redeployed to the Jufra region, which is located in central Libya, and includes an air base in which Russia has deployed war planes in support of Haftar, as recently revealed by the US Forces in Africa (AFRICOM) command.
The Al-Jazeera correspondent in Libya, Ahmed Khalifa, said yesterday, Tuesday, that some sources are talking about the withdrawal of Russian mercenaries from the west and south of Sirte, which may indicate a Russian-Turkish understanding in this regard.
If the withdrawal is confirmed, the reporter explained, this means that Al-Wefaq stormed to Sirte, as happened in the southern suburbs of Tripoli, where Haftar's forces collapsed after the Russians left towards central Libya.
(Communication sites)
Military preparations
Al-Jazeera correspondent said that Al-Wefaq forces located in the Sirte region received reinforcements from several regions in Libya, in an indication of their imminent storming of the strategic city that Haftar forces had captured at the beginning of this year.
Activists also mentioned that the Russian mercenaries withdrew from the Wadi Jarf area, which is located about 25 km west of the city of Sirte.
There are reports of Wagner company gunmen withdrawing to the oil ports at a time when field commanders in the Al-Wefaq government forces confirm that they are awaiting orders to begin the process of recovering Sirte and the Al-Jafra base.
Activists reported that more fighters loyal to the Al-Wefaq government went yesterday to Sirte in anticipation of a military operation that may be imminent.
After recovering the southern suburbs of Tripoli and the city of Tarhuna (80 km southeast of the capital) early last month, Vanguards of the Al-Wefaq forces went to Sirte, and after skirmishes with Haftar's forces, no major confrontations took place, while military sources reported that Russian militants had mined several areas in Sirte .
Meanwhile, a spokesman for the al-Wefaq government forces, Colonel Muhammad Qanunu, called for an end to the presence of mercenaries in support of what he described as a war criminal who had permitted them the land of Libya and its sky, in reference to Haftar.
Kanounou emphasized the necessity of continuing to liberate the cities and extending the authority of the state over all of Libya's soil, and said that the time has come for oil to flow again, and to strike at the wrong hands of the Libyans, as he described.
The military spokesman pledged that mass graves in the city of Tarhuna and laying mines on the outskirts of Tripoli would not go unpunished.
Turkish-American
political agreement , the Turkish presidency said that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and US President Donald Trump agreed during a phone call yesterday to work closely in Libya to ensure lasting stability in it.
For his part, a White House statement announced that Trump and Erdogan stressed the need to reach a negotiated settlement to regional issues.
Earlier, Ankara demanded that Washington play a more active role in Libya, and the Turkish and American presidents had discussed the Libyan crisis at least twice since last March.
On Monday, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoوlu said that the withdrawal of Haftar's forces from Sirte and Jafra was a condition for any ceasefire followed by negotiations to find a political solution to the Libyan crisis.
Egyptian intervention
For its part, said Vladimir Jabarov, First Deputy Chairman of the International Affairs Committee in the Council of the Russian Federation, that the intervention of the Egyptian army in the Libyan conflict could help restore the Libyan state.
At the same time, Jabarov stressed the importance of seeking a political solution to the situation in Libya, noting that there is a need for political negotiations to settle the situation.
The Russian position came hours after the parliament in Tobruk adopted a resolution authorizing Egyptian forces to intervene in Libya whenever it deems it necessary to protect the security of Egypt or Libya.
The Libyan Parliament, held in the capital Tripoli, announced that the call of the Egyptian army to intervene in Libya is a dangerous escalation and a waste of Libyan sovereignty, a coup against legitimacy and a confiscation of the Libyan people's right to self-determination and a violation of Libya's sovereignty and independence.
The Libyan Al-Wefaq government also denounced the Tobruk parliament’s decision and pledged to restore the entire country’s lands, produce oil, and hit the hands that tamper with the people's livelihood.
And Abdel Rahman Al-Shater, a member of the Supreme Council of State, considered the Tobruk parliament’s decision as a "call to shoot the Egyptians with bullets for those who did not die of thirst as a result of the Renaissance Dam".
The flow of oil
in a related context, President of the Supreme Council of State Khalid al-Mashri accused the UAE of working to sabotage the security, political and economic conditions and tearing the social fabric in Libya.
Al-Mashri added, in an interview with Al-Jazeera directly, that Abu Dhabi was linked to the bombing of several sites in Libya, in addition to attempts to hit the local currency and stop oil production, based on what he said was confirmed information.
The forces of Haftar announced Saturday to insist on the closure of ports and oil fields, following the announcement of the National Oil Corporation of the force majeure that prevents the continuation of production.
According to the Foundation’s latest estimates, the decline in oil production has cost the country about $ 6 billion and $ 500 million, in addition to exorbitant costs for repairing massive damage to infrastructure, pipeline network, and well maintenance.
And before the closure of the fields and ports, Libya's oil production reached one million and 220 thousand barrels per day, but it decreased to only about 90 thousand barrels.