Erdogan submits motion on deployment in Libya

Turkey's parliament are set to approve a military deployment in Libya after a motion was submitted by Erdogan.

2 min read

30 December, 2019

Erdogan and Sarraj are allies [Getty]

Turkey's presidency sent a motion to parliament on Monday to approve a military deployment in support of the UN-backed government in Libya, a close ally of Turkey against regional rivals.

The motion, signed by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, will be heard at a special session of parliament on Thursday, state news agency Anadolu reported.

It follows a security and military cooperation agreement signed in late November during a visit to Turkey by the head of the Tripoli-based Government of National Accord (GNA), Fayez al-Sarraj.

On Friday, Erdogan's office confirmed a request for military support had been received from the GNA.

Turkey and its regional ally Qatar have already supplied an array of weapons to the Tripoli government, including drones, but is now threatening a sharp escalation.

Turkey's staunchest rivals, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, back General Khalifa Haftar who launched an offensive against the Tripoli-based government in April.

Libya was plunged into chaos with the toppling and killing of longtime dictator Muammar Gaddafi in a 2011 NATO-backed uprising and has since become divided between two main camps: the GNA and a rival administration in the country's east, backed by Haftar.

Khalifa Haftar's self-styled Libyan National Army launched an offensive in April to take the capital from the internationally recognised GNA, making rapid gains before becoming stalled on the edge of the capital.