Tripoli, June 3, 2020 – Forces backing Libya’s unity government said Wednesday they had reseized the capital’s Tripoli International Airport, held since 2019 by rival forces backing Khalifa Haftar, in the latest in a string of defeats for the easter…
Tripoli, June 3, 2020 – Forces backing Libya’s unity government said Wednesday they had reseized the capital’s Tripoli International Airport, held since 2019 by rival forces backing Khalifa Haftar, in the latest in a string of defeats for the eastern-based military commander. “Our forces have fully liberated Tripoli international airport,” said Mohamad Gnounou, spokesman for forces backing the Government of National Accord (GNA).
Libya’s main civilian airport, lying on the southern edge of the capital on a key highway leading into its centre, had been closed since being heavily damaged in 2014 clashes. Pro-Haftar forces, who launched an assault on the capital in April 2019, had captured the airport weeks later. But their assault ground to a bloody stalemate on the edges of the city and in recent weeks, pro-GNA forces have won back a series of key locations.
Over the past two weeks, pro-GNA forces have launched major ground and air attacks, surrounding the airport area before the final assault, Gnounou said. The operation began Wednesday morning, with drones providing air cover, Gnounou added. Pro-GNA forces were now “chasing Haftar’s militias, who are fleeing (southwards) towards Gasr Ben Gashir” some 20 kilometres (13 miles) south of the capital, he said. Pro-GNA TV channels and social media channels shared videos appearing to show loyalist forces entering the airport.
Haftar’s forces did not immediately comment on the setback, but the loss of the airport follows a string of defeats for Haftar in recent weeks. The military commander, who backs a rival administration in eastern Libya and controls much of the country’s south, last month lost the key Al-Watiya airbase from which he had launched bombing runs. Pro-GNA forces, boosted by Turkish drones and air defences, had also taken back a string of coastal towns. The fighting for Tripoli has killed hundreds and forced around 200,000 people to flee.
#H24News #Libya #Tripoli
Follow us on https://twitter.com/H24Nn..
