The Defense Minister of the Presidential Council, Mahdi Al-Barghathi, has denied reports concerning his intention to testify before the International Criminal Court.
In a press statement on Tuesday, Al- Al-Barghathi pointed out that the news rolled out Libya Al-Hadath TV, which is owned by one of Khalifa Haftar's sons, are false and baseless, describing it as “a figment of the imagination of the channel in an attempt to distort my image and blow the reconciliation efforts.”
Al-Barghathi explained that he has always and will always be on the side of the people of Benghazi in their war against “terrorism”, insisting that he regards all military units in the east, west and south as one Libyan army.
He expressed his confidence in the Presidential Council's policies that do not view the military option a solution to the crisis in Libya, pointing out that the government has always sought to support the efforts of national reconciliation and the unification of the military institution in accordance with the regulations and laws of the country.
Al-Berghathi appreciated the efforts of the brotherly and friendly countries that supported Libya in its war on terror throughout Libya, stressing that he will take legal action against the channel, which he said does not represent the journalistic objectivity, and had deliberately misled the public opinion constantly.
Libya Al-Hadath TV, which is considered to be the media arm of Haftar, has surprisingly released a series of breaking news on Tuesday claiming that Al-Berghathi had testified before a UN Security Council inquiry committee in which he accused Haftar and his forces of committing systematic war crimes.
The channel also cited Al-Berghathi as saying that the forces of Haftar are displacing the revolutionaries and their families after breaking into their homes and stealing their possessions.
It also attributed to him that the summary executions carried out by Mahmoud Al-Werfalli were based on direct orders from Khalifa Haftar, and that the Egyptian and Emirati forces have a presence in the eastern region and are assisting Haftar's militias in their combat operations.
The series of breaking news posed confusion on the Libyan street, especially the direct allegations for Haftar, taking into account the unlimited support of the channel for Haftar.
Al-Berghathi denied the news attributed to him, which made some observers believe that the whole story is an intelligence game, which intends to distract attention from an undisclosed serious issue that might have happened or will happen soon.
