AMMAN — Libyan Presidential Council Chairman Fayez al-Sarraj arrived in Amman on Dec. 1 on an official visit that coincided with an unannounced visit by Field Marshal Khalifa Hifter, commander of the self-proclaimed Libyan National Army. The Jordanian government did not disclose the reason for Hifter's trip. The simultaneous visits by the two opposing officials whet the appetite of commentators about a possible Jordanian role as a mediator between them.
Libya has been plagued by political and military divisions since the fall of the regime of long-time leader Moammar Gadhafi in 2011. In its wake, two governments have been vying to establish their authority over the country, with competing armed tribal groups adding to the chaos. Hifter, who is allied with the so-called Interim Government based in the east, in al-Bayda and Benghazi, does not accept Sarraj’s internationally recognized Government of National Accord (GNA), which was formed as a result of the Libyan Political Agreement, signed in December 2015 in Sukhirat, Morocco, under UN auspices.
