Turkish, Italian FMs discuss Libya over phone

By Ahmet Furkan Mercan

ANKARA (AA) – Turkey’s foreign minister held a phone conversation with his Italian counterpart, Turkish diplomatic sources said on Monday.

Mevlut Cavusoglu and Enzo Moavero Milanesi discussed the latest situation in Libya, said the sources, who asked not to be named due to restrictions on speaking to the media.

No further details of the conversation were provided.

Last Thursday, commander Khalifa Haftar launched military operations with the stated aim of capturing the capital Tripoli. After initial success, however, the campaign on Monday appeared to have ground to a halt.

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

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

* Writing by Nilay Kar Onum