More than five years since the NATO-led coalition launched a military campaign to overthrow the régime of Col. Muammar Gaddafi, Libya remains immersed in violence, turbulence and division. Once one of Africa’s leading oil exporters, violence has led to a serious plunge in Libya’s oil production, with economic slumps resulting from a decline in revenues from “black gold.” Oil production has dropped to about 200,000 barrels per day at present, from 1.6 million barrels per day prior to the 2011 revolution. The international community is concerned about the risk of an outbreak of violence in Libya as rival factions battle for control of seaports and oilfields in the eastern region of the country.
Meanwhile, the country’s romantic Mediterranean coast has been turned into a point of departure for ships carrying illegal migrants to Europe. Human traffickers have taken advantage of political instability and a lack of security in Libya to accelerate their operations. Since June 2015, the fragile security situation in Libya has created a vacuum in which for the IS to seize the central coastal city of Sirte and to build a training camp for Libyan jihadists and foreign fighters.
The endless instability in Libya has resulted from a prolonged political deadlock since the collapse of the Gaddafi régime. With the support of the United Nations, the Government of National Accord (GNA), led by the Presidential Council, has replaced small and opposing administrations, putting an end to the situation where the country had two governments and two parliaments. However, despite coming into operation in early 2016, the internationally recognised government in Libya has still been struggling to get support from various factions and assert its leadership on a national scale. Last August, the parliament in the far eastern city of Tobruk rejected the UN-backed unity government in a vote of no confidence, which dealt a big blow to international efforts to address the crisis.
At an international summit in Marseille, France last week, foreign ministers from countries near the western Mediterranean Sea (including Italy, France, Spain, Portugal and Malta on the northern shore of the Mediterranean, and Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, Libya and Mauritania in North Africa) reiterated their support for Libya’s transitional government. The move has worked out both to promote stability in Libya and to help combat the migration crisis, which has been growing increasingly serious due to the turbulence in the North African country. Earlier this week, another foreign ministers’ meeting on Libya was held in London at the suggestion by the UK and the US. The event provided a platform for powers and representatives from large financial organisations such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, to discuss measures to rescue Libya from the crisis.
The meeting took place as forces loyal to Libya’s unity government, supported by the US, conducted airstrikes, launching a campaign to reclaim Sirte. Government troops have been tightening their encirclement and deploying attacks on the IS’s last lair, which is being used as a base by the extremist group from which to launch terrorist attacks across the region. The US has begun using a Tunisian airbase to conduct spy missions with unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) in Libya, aiming to assist forces loyal to the unity government in repelling the IS from its “citadel” in Sirte. However, solidarity and unity among the factions in Libya will be essential to the success of international efforts.
Instability in Libya is threatening regional security, and the “Old Continent” across the Mediterranean Sea will also be not peaceful if the “hot spot” Libya has yet to be solved. International conferences all affirmed that the political agreement, signed by factions, is the only way to lift Libya out of its current crisis. What is most urgent at present is that the Libyan government breaks the deadlock in order to be able to run the country and establish a united front against the IS, a transoceanic threat.
