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Is proxy war turning to conventional confrontation in Libya?

Albeit late, Turkey seems to have finally understood the importance of diplomacy in Libya.
Prime Minister of Libya's UN-recognised Government of National Accord (GNA) Fayez al-Sarraj (R) meets with Turkey's Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu at the GNA's presidential headquarters in the capital Tripoli on June 17, 2020. (Photo by - / AFP) (Photo by -/AFP via Getty Images)

Tension in the Libyan battlefield over the country’s oil-rich Sirte province and strategic al-Jufra air base has further escalated after the military command of the internationally recognized government declared three areas near Sirte as a military zone, a further signal that the Turkish-backed Government of National Accord (GNA) forces are preparing for a new military push.

The commander of the Sirte-Jufra Protection and Security Operations Room reiterated more than once that the GNA forces were ready to enter Sirte, pending Fayez al-Sarraj's orders as the chief commander of the Libyan army, despite Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi's threats that Sirte province and al-Jufra air base are Cairo’s “red lines.”

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