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BENGHAZI, Aug 26 (Reuters) - Oilfields in eastern Libya that account for almost all the country's production will be closed and production and exports halted, the eastern-based administration said on Monday, after a flare-up in tension over the leadership of the central bank. There was no confirmation from the country's internationally recognised government in Tripoli or from the National Oil Corp (NOC), which controls the country's oil resources. NOC subsidiary Waha Oil Company, however, said it planned to gradually reduce output and warned of a complete halt to Libya's production, citing unspecified "protests and pressures". Another subsidiary Sirte Oil Company...

Russia's Wagner Group mercenaries have sent a "bloodied" sledgehammer in a violin case to the European Parliament after members started proceedings to label them as terrorists. Sledgehammers have become an unofficial symbol of the Kremlin-linked group because its fighters have used them to kill during overseas missions. In a video posted on one of its Telegram channels, a suited lawyer working for Wagner Group carries a violin case into a bare room and places it on a table. He lifts the lid of the violin case, showing off a highly polished sledgehammer. The head has been engraved with Wagner's logo...

As Russia’s ruling elite one-by-one fall down stairs or out windows, another star is rising. Now speculation is mounting that “Putin’s Chef” is preparing to step out of the kitchen. He started out with a catering business. He quickly became part of President Vladimir Putin’s inner sanctum. He’s now behind Russia’s cyber warriors and a host of online trolls. And he has his own mercenary army. Yevgeny Prigozhin is becoming increasingly bold. He’s spruiking his Wagner Group mercenaries as Russia’s most effective fighting force. He’s waging a verbal war against key Putin appointees. He’s winning public support among extremists who...

-Vladimir Putin's crony Yevgeny Prigozhin was responding to EU vote on Russia -He showed a bloodied sledgehammer he wants to present to the EU parliament -Sick stunt relates to episode in which Wagner fighter bludgeoned to death -He had defected to Ukraine before being exchanged back allegedly at request The head of Russian private army Wagner has trolled the West showing a bloodied sledgehammer he wants to present to the European Parliament. Vladimir Putin's crony Yevgeny Prigozhin was responding to a vote to declare Russia a 'state sponsor of terrorism'. The sick stunt relates to an episode in which a...

As the cracks in Russia's war on Ukraine deepen, Russian oligarchs sanctioned by the West are now saying Russian President Vladimir Putin tricked them into appearing to support his invasion of Ukraine, according to an extensive investigation published Saturday by The New York Times. Many of Putin's top advisors didn't know the full extent of his plans to invade Ukraine on February 24 until they were already underway, according to The Times. Senior aides at the Kremlin were trying to read his body language, telling some that Putin had "this warlike twinkle in his eyes," the paper reported. "If everyone...

A Russian think tank reported on Sunday, that Turkey has allegedly concluded a military cooperation agreement with a country bordering Libya. According to Eurasia Political Studies website, "Katehon", who quoted private sources in the Libyan Government of National Accord (GNA), Turkey had signed a military cooperation agreement with the country of Niger, which is located at the southern border of Libya. The site indicated that this agreement between Turkey and Niger will strengthen Ankara's control in the region, as the latter will support African countries, especially the Sahel countries, to be more effective in the issue of resolving the Libyan...

The armed forces have destroyed a militant who previously killed people in Syria and Libya and wrote the book "#theyarenotthere". As Censor.NET reports about it with reference to the "Myrotvorets" center. According to the Center, the pro-Kremlin mercenary is the author of the autobiographical book "#theyrenotthere", which tells about his participation in hostilities in Ukraine, Syria, and Libya. "Orlov was so eager for fame that until the last day he posted photos and videos of his participation in the fighting in Ukraine, while merging the dispositions of orcs in the Donbas. Using even these data, the Ukraine Armed Forces...

The Tripoli Court of Appeal on Monday overturned an earlier verdict to exclude Libyan warlord Khalifa Haftar from this month’s presidential elections, according to local media.The private Libya Al-Ahrar TV said the court ruled to allow Haftar to run in the Dec. 24 polls.Last week, a court in the western city of al-Zawiya issued a ruling to exclude Haftar from the vote.Last month, a Libyan court had disqualified Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, the son of former strongman Muammar Gaddafi, from the polls, before he appealed the verdict.On Wednesday, Libya’s elections commission is expected to announce a final list of candidates for...

Libya's weak new government needs to strike a deal with strongman Haftar to stay afloat.A businessman with Gaddafi regime ties, Abdelhamid Debaiba defied the odds when a UN-led dialogue chose him as prime minister earlier this month, despite French and Egyptian backing for a rival list led by the east Libyan parliament speaker Aguileh Saleh and west Libyan interior minister Fathi Bashagha. One powerbroker, however, breathed a sigh of relief. Khalifa Haftar, the military commander who launched a devastating war on Tripoli in 2019 only to be defeated and increasingly marginalised, was back in the saddle.

U.S. Africa Command says that at least two MiG-29 Fulcrum fighter jets, possibly piloted by shadowy Russian mercenaries, have crashed in Libya. Jared Szuba, the Pentagon correspondent for AI-Monitor, Tweeted out that one of the jets was apparently lost on June 28, while the other went down on September 7, 2020. This information had come in a statement from Rear Admiral Heidi Berg, U.S. Africa Command's (AFRICOM) director of intelligence. Another tweet indicates that Berg believes that "Russian fighter aircraft," presumably MiG-29s too, but potentially also Su-24 Fencer strike aircraft, have conducted airstrikes in Libya. AI-Monitor's Szuba follows that up...

Speaking to Anadolu Agency, Gen. Abdulhadi Dirah, the spokesman for the army's Sirte-Jufra Joint Operations Unit, said that carrying military ammunition, Ilyushin-type planes conducted five flights to Sirte and Jufra provinces on Saturday. Carrying Bashar al-Assad regime's soldiers, two more flights were made from Syria to Benghazi, the second biggest Libyan city, which is the center of the Haftar's forces, Dirah said. Libya has been torn by civil war since the ouster of late ruler Muammar Gaddafi in 2011. The government was founded in 2015 under a UN-led agreement, but efforts for a long-term political settlement failed due to a...

Turkey and Qatar have reiterated their support for Libya's internationally recognised government during a trip by their defence chiefs to the capital, Tripoli, where Germany's foreign minister also paid an unexpected visit... The country has been split since 2014 between factions based in the east and west, and regional powers have aligned themselves with the competing sides. While Turkey and its regional ally Qatar support the GNA, forces in the east led by renegade military commander Khalifa Haftar have received backing from the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Russia. "We believe that we will achieve the wanted results by supporting...

In the wake of the normalization of relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, there are rumors that several other states could be next to sign an agreement with Israel. While there are hurdles to normalizing relations with some states in the Middle East, there are others who view the UAE decision as a trial balloon and will react positively based on how the next weeks and months play out between Jerusalem and Abu Dhabi. What follows is a list of some countries that reports suggest may be in line to normalize relations. Bahrain Bahrain was long thought to...

President Abdel Fattah El Sisi praised the newly-announced agreement of normalization between the United Arab of Emirates and Israel under the US brokerage. “I followed with great interest and appreciation the tripartite joint statement between the United States of America, the […] United Arab Emirates and Israel regarding the agreement to stop Israel's annexation of the Palestinian territories,” said President Abdel Fattah El Sisi on his official Twitter on Thursday. He praised this move as it would “bring peace to the Middle East,” Saying “I value the efforts that were exerted by those who in charge of this agreement in...

Turkey bashes UAE for normalizing ties with Israel, calling the move as "betrayal," while underlining that the diplomatic relations with Abu Dhabi are at risk The United Arab Emirates (UAE) betrays the Palestinian cause by inking a deal with Israel, Turkey said on Friday, emphasizing that the move will be remembered by history as a disgraceful incident while signaling that diplomatic ties with the Emirates are at risk. Turkey may suspend its diplomatic relations with the UAE, or recall its ambassador, President Recep Tayyip ErdoÄŸan said Friday, revealing the scale of the possible after-effects of such a move on part...

France is deploying two Rafale fighter jets and a naval frigate in the eastern Mediterranean because of tensions between Greece and Turkey. French President Emmanuel Macron has urged Turkey to halt oil and gas exploration in disputed waters in the area. A Turkish survey ship began such a mission on Monday, angering Greece. The area is rich in untapped energy. There are also tensions around Cyprus over rival exploration rights. The Republic of Cyprus and Greece do not accept any such rights for Turkish-controlled northern Cyprus in the region. France is also at odds with Turkey over the crisis in...

In a move that illustrates new levels of boldness, Russian fighters have seized one of the largest oil fields in Libya. The Es Sider oil field was one of the main economic pipelines for the Government of National Accord. Over the last seven months, the Libyan National Army (LNA) has held a stranglehold on oil exports. The LNA, led by Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, has struggled militarily as of late, suffering defeat after defeat since June. Now the LNA is looking to negotiate using the oil fields for leverage, effectively keeping the economy hostage. Libyan oil exports have been reduced...

The Popular Resistance is a militia linked to Yemen's Islah party, a Muslim Brotherhood affiliate that has good relations with both Saudi Arabia and its regional rival Turkey. Part of the Saudi-led coalition fighting the Houthi movement, the party and the militia have enemies within the alliance battling on behalf of President Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi's government - particularly groups allied with the United Arab Emirates, which is a major backer of eastern Libyan commander Khalifa Haftar. Recent reports by anti-Islah media in Yemen have accused the party of sending Yemenis to Turkey under the guise of receiving medical treatment,...

JEDDAH: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was warned on Sunday to keep his forces out of Libya or face an armed response. The warning came from Libya's eastern military strongman Gen. Khalifa Haftar, who leads the Libyan National Army (LNA) in the conflict with the Government of National Accord (GNA) in Tripoli, headed by Fayez Al-Sarraj. Erdogan has sent Turkish-backed mercenaries from Syria to fight for the GNA, along with artillery and heavy weapons that have turned the tide in its favor. In a speech to troops to mark Eid Al-Adha, Haftar accused the Turkish president of "coming to Libya...

DUBAI: The United Arab Emirates minister of state for foreign affairs said on Saturday that Turkey should stop interfering in Arab affairs, criticizing comments on Libya made by Turkey’s defense minister. Turkish media had reported the Turkish minister making remarks critical of the UAE’s actions over Libya. The UAE, alongside Egypt and Russia, backs eastern Libya commander Khalifa Haftar, whose fighters have been battling the forces of the internationally recognized government in Tripoli. Turkey has stepped up support for the Tripoli government. “Relations are not managed by threats and there is no place for colonialist delusions in this day and...