Libya

The United Nations Security Council will meet behind closed doors on Monday about the situation in Libya, as Turkish troops began deploying to the country in a bid to shore up the UN-recognised government in Tripoli. The meeting, held at Russia's request, is formally focused on an international conference on Libya that Germany hopes to organise by month's end. So far, no date for the meeting has been announced.

The UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL), on Sunday strongly condemned the bombing of a military academy in the capital Tripoli, which according to news reports left at least 30 dead and more than 30 others wounded.

Turkey's parliament has approved a bill to deploy troops to Libya in support of the embattled United Nations-recognised Government of National Accord (GNA), paving the way for increased military cooperation despite criticism from opposition lawmakers.

The Arab League called Tuesday for efforts to "prevent foreign interference" in Libya in the wake of military and maritime agreements signed by Turkey with the U.N.-recognized government in Tripoli.

The top United Nations official in Libya has condemned recent airstrikes targeting civilian installations that left at least three people dead and several others injured. Ghassan Salamé, head of the UN Support Mission in the country, UNSMIL, called for greater civilian protection following the incidents, which occurred in three locations in the west.

Turkey moved closer to military support for Libya’s internationally recognised government late on Saturday (14 December) when a bilateral deal that provides for a quick reaction force if requested by Tripoli was sent to parliament.

The UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) said it had documented 647 civilian casualties since last April, when Khalifa Haftar's offensive on Tripoli began.

Report names five Sudanese and four Chadian armed groups it says contributed combatants to Libya's civil war.

At a recent conference on the situation in Libya, a speaker declared that all parties involved agree that political decentralization is the way forward in the country. This is largely true, except that none of the militia coalitions currently vying for power has articulated the slightest interest in the idea. The same goes for all of the other ideas for resolving the conflict, such as floating the currency to minimize letter of credit fraud, and eliminating fuel subsidies to curtail rampant smuggling and profiteering by armed groups.

UN-recognised government blames renegade military commander Khalifa Haftar's forces for attacking residential areas.