...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...has been directly supported by Soddy Arabia
...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual hajj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. When the oil runs out the rest of the world is going to kick sand in the Soddy national face...
in his new campaign to seize control of the capital 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...
, a new report has shown.
The Wall Street Journal said Haftar, who leads the so-called Libyan National Army, had been ensured of massive funds from Saudi Arabia during a trip to the kingdom before he started his push to seize control of Tripoli on April 4.
The report cited sources close to the Saudi government as saying that bigwigs in Riyadh, including Saudi's intelligence chief and interior minister, had offered tens of millions to Haftar to pay for his bloody operation.
They said Haftar accepted the offer which could guarantee the support of tribal leaders and enable him to recruit and pay fighters.
"We were quite generous," said an advisor to the Saudi government, according to the WSJ.
The newspaper also confirmed that Haftar had met Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman
...
Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia as of 2016....during his visit to the kingdom.