Italian ambassador to Libya, Giuseppe Perrone, denied Saturday media news that said Italy was intending to set up a military base in southern Libya.
Perrone said on Twitter that the rumors on the news about the Italian military base are fake news, adding that his country’s interior ministry is leading European Union’s program to strengthen Libya’s sovereignty and border security to combat human traffickers’ networks.
The denial came after news was posted on an Italian newspaper that Italian Interior Minister Matteo Salvini agreed with the Head of the Presidential Council Fayez Al-Sirraj to set up a military base in Libya’s south.
The news left Ghat city’s municipality and social council of tribes in dispute as the latter rejected a visit for an Italian delegation over accusation of the former of treachery.
Meanwhile, Khalifa Haftar’s general command issued a statement warning international actors wishing to have military presence in southern Libya on the pretext of fighting illegal immigration that such actions would be violation of sovereignty and international laws.
Italy’s Interior Minister visited Tripoli last week and expressed while meeting Libyan top officials intention to set up migrants’ reception camps in southern Libya, which Libya rejected and then he himself played down and said he meant outside Libya’s border.
