The member of the 5+5 Joint Military Commission (JMC) Al-Fitouri Gharibel said the plan for withdrawing foreign forces and mercenaries from Libya wasn't implemented because of the current political division, especially the recent crisis of the two governments.
Gharibel told Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper that they don't know how long the delay of implementing the plan will take, knowing that the JMC has finished all technical work in coordination with the UNSMIL and regional actors as well as neighboring countries and the countries that have forces and mercenaries in Libya.
“We have already formed communication committees for Cairo and Tunis meetings in November 2021 in addition to the visits to countries which are involved in those meetings. The delay of elections by current political bodies and their extended mandates with a continuing division will keep the JMC plan shelved.” Gharibel added.
He said the global focus on the Russian war in Ukraine, which could push talks between JMC and Russian officials, wouldn't have a big impact if the interior conflict in Libya ended with an elected president, parliament and a unified government, adding that there could be a chance then to withdraw mercenaries by force if needed, not to mention the possibility of the withdrawal of Russian Wagner Group mercenaries for the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.
