The Libyan National Accord Government forces destroyed six Russian air defense systems, and reinforced their positions near the city of Tarhuna; As a prelude to extracting it from the forces of retired Major General Khalifa Hifter, at a time when Washington and Paris have joined international parties calling for an end to the escalation in Libya.
Al-Wefaq forces confirmed that its planes destroyed three Russian air defense systems in Tarhuna (80 km southeast of Tripoli) and two in the Al-Washka area between the cities of Misurata and Sirte, and another by means of a guided cannon in the Souk Al-Ahad suburb (south of the capital), which raises the number of Russian systems Which was destroyed in three to nine days.
The forces of the Libyan National Accord government also presented the system, which it seized after taking control of the Al-Wataya military base, and roamed the streets of the capital, Tripoli.
The Libyan army spokesman, Mohamed Kanounou, said that the Russian air defense system “Pantzir” was purchased with Emirati money in order to eliminate the legitimate government, and added that the Libyan military position is excellent, and all cities of the country will be cleared and that the government will not terrorize the Emirati checks, Egyptian intelligence or Wagner Russian.
The Al-Wefaq government aircraft launched several raids on Tarhuna, which also resulted in the destruction of several vehicles, and other strikes targeted sites in Al-Washa and the town of Al-Asaba, near Tarhuna. As a result, dead Haftar militants were killed.
Elements of Al-Wefaq forces during clashes with gunmen of Haftar, south of Tripoli (Anatolia)Concurrently, Al-Wefaq forces strengthened their positions on the outskirts of Tarhuna, to pressure the city in preparation for its control. This development comes after a spokesman for Haftar announced the redeployment of his forces south of Tripoli, amid reports of the collapse of the alliance between Tarhuna militants and Haftar’s forces coming from the Libyan east.
Military operation
A spokesman for the media center for the “Berkane El-Fathi” operation, Mustafa Al-Mujei, said that the operations room of Al-Wefaq forces had completed what he described as the Tarhuna liberation plan, and said that the process would begin very soon.
He added that neutralizing Russian air defenses with a mortgage is a prelude to the military operation that preceded it a month ago, an unsuccessful attempt.
The internationally recognized Libyan government forces are preparing for a process aimed at Tarhuna, after controlling in the past few days the strategic Al-Wataya base (140 km southwest of Tripoli), the towns of Tiji and Badr in the western mountain, as well as their progress towards the town of Al-Asaba, which is negotiating with their notables to hand them over to the government of reconciliation.
In the vicinity of Al-Asaba, located to the south of Gharyan (approximately 100 kilometers southwest of the capital); Thursday 21, May five al-Wefaq forces were killed and twenty wounded in a raid by a Haftar aircraft.
Military and civilian components in the city of Zintan (located in the western mountain) declared their support for the Al-Wefaq government, and a similar position was issued by the local authority in the city of Mazda, which is on a supply line for Haftar forces towards the city of Tarhuna, the last bastion of Haftar in the Libyan West.
A mass grave
In the midst of the ongoing military operations, the “Borkan Rage” operation of the Al-Wefaq government announced that its forces had found a grave with seven bodies in one of the fighting axes south of Tripoli.
Operation “Anger Volcano,” said on its Facebook page that it had found that cemetery after advancing on one of the forces ’observatories, and Al-Wefaq forces had repeatedly accused Haftar’s forces of executing prisoners and civilians in fighting axes south of the capital.
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Politically reducing the escalation, the White House said that President Donald Trump and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron discussed, in a telephone call, concerns about the increasing foreign intervention in Libya, noting that the two sides agreed during the call on the urgent need to reduce the escalation.
In Moscow, a source in the Russian Foreign Ministry expressed Moscow’s support for any initiative aimed at stopping the bloodshed in Libya.
In Ankara, Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said that it was consulting and training exercises with the elements of the Turkish armed forces that changed the scales by a large percentage in Libya.
The European Union had called, in turn, for a halt to the military escalation and a return to the political process. The UN mission in Libya also called for a ceasefire, and warned that foreign interventions would fuel the conflict.
For his part, head of the National Front Party in Libya, Abdullah Al-Refadi, said that the UAE supported Haftar because it saw that Libya, by virtue of its geographical location, its cultural composition, and its economic status, represented a real national and strategic threat to its future.
Al-Refadi added, in an exclusive interview with Al-Jazeera, that the UAE found its hero in Haftar to lead a project to destroy Libya, and stated that Haftar will not leave this project and withdraw from the fighting axes of the southern suburbs of Tripoli except by force of arms.
