TRIPOLI, Libya — Khalifa Hifter, commander of the self-styled Libyan National Army (LNA), announced May 8 the start of a military operation to take Derna in northeastern Benghazi. This military operation has long been expected, as coastal Derna is the last remaining major town in eastern Libya that has not fallen to Hifter’s forces, which are backed by the country’s Tobruk-based parliament. Libya has two competing governments: one in Tripoli supported by the United Nations and another in Tobruk that lacks international support.
The military operation is seemingly planned to coincide with the anniversary of the Karama Operation (Operation Dignity). Hifter, supported by few military officers, launched the Karama Operation four years ago to “liberate Libya” from terror organizations such as the Shura Council, Ansar al-Sharia and even the Islamic State (IS), which took over much of eastern Libya, including Benghazi, Libya’s second-largest city, and the capital of its eastern region.
