...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, so it's kind of hard to describe him as a Qadaffy holdover. 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. Actually, he is, but slowly...held a meeting with the UK Ambassador to Libya, Caroline Hurndall.
The meeting took place at Haftar’s office in Benghazi. The LNA has not disclosed the subject of the talks.
Last week, Hurndall held talks with members of the Libyan Parliament in Benghazi.
The meeting dealt with a number of issues, including the role of the United Kingdom in supporting security and stability in Libya. As well as the illegal immigration crisis, and its impact on the security and stability of the UK and EU.
The MP’s stressed the need to hold Presidential and Parliamentary elections simultaneously, the need to remove mercenaries and foreign forces from Libya, and establish a fair, transparent, distribution mechanism for the country’s natural resources.
They also discussed the unification of the executive authority, and inviting British companies to work in Libya’s energy sector.
Notably, the Libyan Parliament said it is ready to support the new UN Envoy, Abdoulaye Bathily to "end the political division and to combat terrorism in the country," according to Fathi al-Mariami, the Media Adviser to the Parliament Speaker.
During a televised interview with the al-Ghad channel, al-Mariami noted that Libya needs the UN Mission (UNSMIL) and the UN Envoy in order to secure a consensus between the conflicting parties. "We need consensus on the constitutional base, and the holding of Parliamentary and Presidential elections," he explained.
Notably, Libyan Parliament Speaker, Ageela Saleh and the Head of the High Council of State (HCS), Khaled al-Mishri agreed to unify the executive authorities of Libya by 2023, they said in a joint statement on Friday.