Egypt looks to roll back Islamist militias in Libya
The Egyptian government is closely coordinating with the elected parliament and government in Libya to win back control of Benghazi and Tripoli.
CAIRO — Egypt has been taking diplomatic steps to settle the armed conflict in Libya, but in the meantime, the Libyan national army has been fighting with political, military and logistical support from Cairo to regain gradual control of Benghazi from Islamist militias.
An Egyptian diplomatic source involved in Libyan affairs told Al-Monitor, “We are working with local and foreign parties to put the Islamist militias and Muslim Brotherhood in Benghazi and Tripoli under siege.”
The Egyptian government is trying to restore relative stability to Libya, a source of concern for Cairo because of the power and control of jihadist militias there. The administration of Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, which came to power after the toppling of President Mohammed Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood in July 2013, feels threatened by the jihadists' armed strength.
The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told Al-Monitor, “The Egyptian actions have achieved relative success in Libya, where there are legitimate bodies that can be counted on, such as the elected Libyan parliament and the interim government, which gave its vote of confidence to the Libyan national army.” The source, however, expressed concern over the rise of the groups controlling Tripoli, saying, “It won’t be easy to take part in military confrontations now.”
