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.”