Libya power struggle deepens as rogue general wins allies

TRIPOLI — Libya’s rival armed groups took position Tuesday for or against a renegade general’s campaign to rid the country of jihadists as Islamist leaders in parliament vowed not to cede power.

The Muslim Brotherhood, which forms the largest bloc in the 194-strong General National Congress (GNC) along with radical Islamists, rejected government calls for MPs to go into recess.

The GNC, Libya’s top political authority, has accused Khalifa Haftar, who led a deadly assault on Islamist militia in Benghazi last week, of attempting a coup.

But the former general has won widening support for his campaign, not only from militia groups but also from special forces of the regular army in Benghazi.

Islamist militia in both Benghazi and Tripoli vowed to resist any move against them by Haftar’s forces, whose militia allies stormed parliament at the weekend, forcing the venue for Tuesday’s meeting to move to a Tripoli hotel.

The Operations Cell of Libyan Revolutionaries — a powerful Islamist militia — pledged to defend the parliament by force if necessary.

In Benghazi, jihadist group Ansar Al Sharia, blacklisted as a terrorist organisation by Washington, vowed to resist any renewed assault by Haftar’s men on its positions in the eastern city.

The group charged that Haftar, who spent more than two decades in exile in the United States, was leading “a war against... Islam orchestrated by the United States and its Arab allies”.

Haftar’s forces pulled out of Benghazi after Friday’s clashes which killed at least 79 people.

But he said he will re-enter the city to cleanse it of “terrorists” and has won the support of special forces there who have suffered mounting losses to suspected jihadist attacks.

“A confrontation is now inevitable to defend our city and our land. We will act with force against anyone who enters the city or attacks it,” Ansar Al Sharia said.

The group, which denies accusations it was behind a September 2012 attack on the US consulate in Benghazi that killed ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans, was put on the US terror blacklist in January.

Showdown in parliament 

The GNC had been due to convene at 1100 GMT Tuesday to debate the budget and a motion of confidence in Prime Minister Ahmed Miitig’s government, lawmakers said.

But several hours later it had failed to reach the necessary quorum of 120 to meet, amid bickering by lawmakers.

A previous vote of confidence was marred by accusations of irregularities. The government has called on the GNC to repeat that vote, and then go into recess until a new legislature can be elected.

But Islamists who dominate parliament refuse to go into recess and the Muslim Brotherhood’s political arm, the Party for Justice and Construction, called on the premier to disown the plan.

Successive governments have complained that the GNC’s claim to executive power, as well as legislative authority, has tied their hands in bringing to heel the former rebel militias that have carved out fiefdoms since the NATO-backed uprising ousted and killed long-time dictator Muammar Qadhafi in 2011.

The interim parliament sparked widespread public outrage earlier this year when it extended its own mandate until December.

Both sides in the stand-off have heavily armed militia allies positioned around Tripoli, raising fears of a rapid degeneration into armed conflict.

Saudi Arabia followed Algeria in closing its embassy although Washington has said the US mission continues to operate normally.

There was also an exodus of foreign staff from Libya’s vital oil sector, with Algeria confirming it had repatriated some 50 employees of its state-run energy giant Sonatrach.

World oil prices rose on Tuesday on concerns about the impact on Libyan exports.

The US benchmark, West Texas Intermediate for delivery in June, climbed 15 cents to $102.76 a barrel.

“Further unrest in Libya is the main factor in the oil market at the moment,” David Lennox, resource analyst at Fat Prophets, told AFP.