An undisclosed military entity in Libya is reported to have risen in defiance against what it deems as “Turkish occupation,” citing concerns over Turkish control of strategic sites within the country.
Libya Review, a daily online newspaper, reported that in a video statement released on Tuesday, the group claims that Turkey has exceeded its rightful authority by consolidating its grip on vital Libyan installations, including the Al-Watiya Airbase, Sidi Bilal Port, and most recently, the pivotal Khoms Port, a primary Libyan nexus for imports and commodities.
The group highlights the silence of the “illegitimate Dbaiba family government” in the capital Tripoli as a catalyst, denouncing Turkish bases as colonial and vowing to resist, declaring “all occupied sites” as “legitimate targets”.
In 2020, Turkey undertook a military intervention to back the United Nations-recognised interim government in the Libyan civil war that spanned from 2014 to 2020. Sanctioned by the Grand National Assembly of Turkey in January 2020, this intervention authorised the deployment of troops to Libya for a year-long mission, which was later prolonged.