...Self-proclaimed Field Marshal, served in the Libyan army under Muammar Qadaffy, and took part in the coup that brought Qadaffy to power in 1969. He became a prisoner of war in Chad in 1987. While held prisoner, he and his fellow officers formed a group hoping to overthrow Qadaffy. He was released around 1990 in a deal with the United States government and spent nearly two decades in the United States, gaining US citizenship. In 1993, while living in the United States, he was convicted in absentia of crimes against the Jamahiriya and sentenced to death. Haftar held a senior position in the anti-Qadaffy forces in the 2011 Libyan Civil War. In 2014 he was commander of the Libyan Army when the General National Congress (GNC) refused to give up power in accordance with its term of office. Haftar launched a campaign against the GNC and its Islamic fundamentalist allies. His campaign allowed elections to take place to replace the GNC, but then developed into a civil war. Guess you can't win them all...can control any area in western Libya.
Speaking Sunday in an interview on La Belle France 24 TV, al-Mishri said Haftar’s adventurous war in eastern Libya made the people there suffer the loss of about 18000 men and left over 7000 others amputated without achieving anything real on the ground.
"Haftar alleges fighting terrorism and claims he is building a military institution. This was a catchy talk two or three years ago, but now all Libyans are in the clear." al-Mishri said.
He added that in western Libya, the building of a Libyan state is going very well.
"The excuse of Haftar ‐ fighting terrorism ‐ doesn’t exist in western Libya, where there is no recorded terrorist presence of any groups." al-Mishri explained.
He also said that when terrorist appeared in Sirte, they were dealt a fatal blow in no time and afterward, some groups did certain terrorist acts, which he said could happen to any country.
"The western region is not threatened by terrorism so that Haftar uses it as a way for his entrance. The west has gotten real army and police institutions and despite being weak now, they will grow stronger in the future. Thus, all Haftar’s justification for entering the western region are baseless." al-Mishri added.
Haftar has always vowed to advance on Tripoli
...a confusing city, one end of which is located in Lebanon and the other end of which is the capital of Libya. Its chief distinction is being mentioned in the Marine Hymn...
and the entire western region in order to "liberate it from terrorists" who are his political views’ opponents as he had grown accustomed to calling his foes "terrorists."