...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...
, according to a statement made by LNA front man Ahmed Mismari from an undisclosed location on Friday.
Mismari explained that these actions are part of ’Operation Flood of Dignity’ and said that "the goal of ’Operation Flood of Dignity’ is the liberation of Tripoli and of all Libya."
He addressed people living in the Tripoli area, stating that "our army is coming to you in order to save you from turbans and criminals so that you can live in safety and with dignity."
He added that five soldiers had died thus far in ’Flood of Dignity’ which had already moved into the towns of Gharyan and Aziziya in the country’s northwest before closing in on Tripoli’s coastal airport.
On Friday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres met with LNA head Khalifa Haftar
...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...in Benghazi, after which he commented to the media that he was hoping "it will be possible to avoid a bloody confrontation in and around Tripoli."
"The United Nations
...a formerly good idea gone bad...
remain available to facilitate any political solution able to unify the Libyan institutions. Whatever happens, the UN will remain committed, and I will remain committed, to support the Libyan people," Guterres added.