Al-Jazeera sources from the Al-Jufra region (central Libya) confirmed the complete withdrawal of the mercenaries of the Russian Wagner Company from all their locations and operations rooms in the city of Sokna and from the road linking the cities of Wadan and Sirte (central Libya).
The sources said that after their withdrawal, Wagner fighters headed to the Al-Jufra air base in the center of the country, accompanied by their full equipment and armed mechanisms, and the "Pantsir" air defense systems that accompany them in all their movements.
The sources indicated that the reasons for the withdrawal of the Wagner mercenaries or their final destination after their gathering inside the Al-Jufra base were not yet known.
The head of the Libyan High Council of State, Khaled Al-Mashri, confirmed that more than 7,000 armed Russian Wagner mercenaries are in Libya.
He added that they have 30 jet aircraft located at the Qaradabiya base (Sirte), one of the largest military bases, next to the Al-Jufra base.
Russian Wagner mercenaries have been active since April 2019 in the cities of Sirte (east of Tripoli) and Al-Jufra (southeast of Tripoli), and are stationed at Al-Qardabiya Air Base in Sirte and its sea port, in addition to the Al-Jufra air base in central Libya.
Despite the Libyan parties’ agreement on October 23, 2020 to expel foreign mercenaries, led by Wagner, from their country within 3 months of that date, this has not been achieved on the ground.