Renewed Intense Fighting Throughout Libya

On August 27, intense clashes between rival armed groups in Libya were renewed following a surprise attack from one armed group, the Seventh Brigade, launched against their rivals. According to Al Jazeera, after roughly a week of fighting 39 Libyan’s were killed, including 18 civilians, with hundreds more wounded. The armed groups are indiscriminately shooting during the clashes, which explains the high-rate of civilian casualties. Since the Arab Spring, Libya has been unstable and have struggled to rejuvenate the political institution. The Seventh Brigade has grown substantially since 2017 and are the only armed group that controls an entire town. Moreover, the Seventh Brigade recently took control of the only working airport in the Libyan capital of Tripoli. The groups aim of the latest violence is to, “cleanse Tripoli of corrupt militias … who use their influence to get bank credits worth millions of dollars while ordinary people sleep outside banks to get a few dinars.” The fighting is increasingly intensifying and putting doubt into international and domestic opinion whether or not Libya can go through with the elections planned later this year.

The government has struggled to control the spiral of violence following Muammar Gadhafi’s ousting in 2011. Emadeddin Muntasser, a Libyan political analyst, claimed, “The GNA (Libya’s internationally recognized government) is a paper government with no influence of events.” In another statement, Muntasser noted on the standard of living in the country, much to blame because of the GNA’s failure to lead the country, “Lack of bank liquidity, corruption, and interruptions of all basic services have made living conditions quite desperate.” Although many of the armed groups tend to be under the GNA government, the groups have virtually acted with autonomy. Tarek Megerisi, a specialist on Libyan politics commented, “Everybody is under the GNA government because the Ministry of Interior and Ministry of Defense pay out salaries, but nobody takes orders from them.” The US, France, Italy, and the UK released a joint-statement condemning the violence, “Those who tamper with security in Tripoli or elsewhere in Libya that they will be held accountable for any such actions.” Moreover, the French foreign ministry stated, “These attempts to weaken the legitimate Libyan authorities and hinder the ongoing political process are not acceptable.” The escalation of violence threatens the future of the country, especially if the armed groups recede in power and are driven away from the country, “Plagued with incompetence, corruption and infighting, the GNA will come apart as soon as the armed gangs that offer it protection are driven out,” Muntasser said.

The United Nations and other international coalitions must be more accountable for the stability of Libya. Although the UN officially backs the GNA, they have little to no power in reality and are wasting member states monetary and material contributions by allowing the groups causing the national instability benefit from the international efforts. NATO significantly contributed to the effort of ousting Gadhafi in 2011 but have played little part in rebuilding Libya. Much like the US failures in Iraq and Afghanistan, NATO forces failed to account for the diverse set of factors destabilizing the country and complicating the reestablishment of a true government. The UN and NATO need to increase their presence in the country and begin planning negotiation operations between the active armed groups and the GNA before the fighting intensifies even more.

After Muammar Gaddafi was ousted and killed in 2011, regional, tribal, and linguistic differences have made it difficult for Libya to transition to democracy. The armed groups operating throughout the country, specifically concentrated in the capital, were an important addition to the mission to topple Gaddafi during the Arab Spring. However, the governments in power since 2011 have failed to reincorporate the armed groups into the formal social and political structure in Libya. The armed groups have divided control of infrastructure and natural resources, which has significantly weakened the formal government.

The future of Libyan stability depends on the ability of domestic and international actors to formulate a political structure that represents the diverse set of differences and reintegrates the rival armed groups back into civilian society. The UN has no real power in the country and must work beyond just condemning increased violence both in Libya and around other parts of the world.

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