Libya: Haftar forces face robust resistance in Tripoli

By Walid Abdullah

TRIPOLI (AA) - East Libya-based forces led by military commander Khalifa Haftar on Wednesday attempted to push deep into Tripoli amid fierce resistance by UN-backed government forces.

According to an Anadolu Agency correspondent, Haftar forces made some advances against troops of the Government of National Accord (GNA) in Ain Zara area in center-southern Tripoli.

Wednesday’s clashes are reported to be the fiercest since Haftar’s forces launched a military campaign to capture Tripoli on Thursday.

Haftar’s forces have been also deployed as well in Sabratah and Sorman -- some 70 kilometers (44 miles) west of Tripoli -- in preparation to attack Zawiya district in western Tripoli.

Meanwhile, in the vicinity of Tripoli International Airport, pro-Haftar forces are reported to have controlled the area adjacent to the Qasr Ben Ghashir area.

The local Ahrar T.V. channel reported that GNA warplanes struck two military camps of Haftar’s forces in Garyan city, south of Tripoli.

Last week, Haftar, who is affiliated with a rival government based in the country’s east, announced the launch of an ambitious campaign to capture the capital, where the GNA is headquartered.

By Monday, however, Haftar’s campaign appeared to have lost momentum, with pro-GNA forces recapturing two military bases near Tripoli that had been briefly seized by Haftar’s forces.

The two sides have also continued to trade blows over three strategic airports located on the capital’s outskirts.

Libya has remained beset by turmoil since 2011, when a bloody NATO-backed uprising led to the ouster and death of President Muammar Gaddafi after four decades in power.

Since then, the country’s stark political divisions have yielded two rival seats of power: one in eastern Libya, with which Haftar is associated, and another in Tripoli, which enjoys UN support.

*Writing by Mahmoud Barakat