The Sabratha Military Council has condemned the Italian government’s recent moves to get in touch with the leader of Dignity Operation Khalifa Haftar; five days after the meeting of Sabratha Mayor Hussein Al-Dawadi and the Italian Ambassador to Libya Giuseppe Peroni.
In a statement on Thursday, the council criticized the official invitation sent by the Italian government to Khalifa Haftar to visit Rome on September 26, despite the fact that the legitimate authorities in Tripoli appointed a new Chief of Staff of the Libyan Army.
“We denounce the invitation at a time the International Criminal Court (ICC) has repeatedly demanded the arrest of one of his affiliates for committing war crimes”. The statement indicated.
The military council called on all countries to stop any initiatives that give legitimacy to those who pursue military action for political gains, expressing its appreciation to the Italian authorities for their support to the health institutions in Sabratha, but with reservation on their suspicious efforts to combat illegal migration away from the official authorities, according to the statement.
Mayor Hussein Al-Dawadi and Ambassador Giuseppe Peroni met on Sunday to discuss cooperation to reduce flow of migrants from Sabratha to the Italian shores by strengthening the security within the city.
Earlier, Italian media reports accused the government of Paolo Gentiloni of paying millions of dollars to armed groups in Libya in return for stopping the migration from the coast of Sabratha.
