what is the longest running armed conflict

Now, the war economy has sent costs skyrocketing, and there are widespread problems with medicine shortages and power cuts. Under Gaddafi’s brutal rule, Libya had one of the highest standards of living in Africa. High-profile peace talks in Berlin this year did not result in any lasting truce. Russia has sent mercenaries and Sudanese men have been recruited to fight alongside the LNA in January the Guardian reported that Turkey sent Syrian recruits along with its own soldiers, to defend the Tripoli government. The foreign parties have flooded Libya with weapons and drones, ignoring a UN arms embargo. The LNA enjoys the support of Russia, Egypt, the UAE, Saudi Arabia and, to a lesser extent, France and Jordan.

The GNA is backed by the UN and western countries, but its main allies are Turkey, Qatar and Italy. Over the last few years foreign powers have increasingly intervened in Libya’s civil war to defend their own strategic and economic interests. What is the international community doing? Haftar’s supporters say he is a bulwark against extremism, while others see him as another would-be military dictator. While the GNA is officially recognised by the UN as Libya’s legitimate government, it holds little power on the ground, and some distrust its Islamist politics. The Tobruk government appointed Haftar to lead the Libyan National Army (LNA) and restore its sovereignty. Since 2014 the fighting has mainly been between rival centres of political power in east and west Libya: the Tripoli administration, known as the Government of National Accord (GNA), led by Sarraj, and the Tobruk administration, which decamped to the eastern city after disputed elections.

Attempts to build a democratic state after Gaddafi fell disintegrated into a new civil war between rival governments in 2014.Īrmed groups, including extremists such as Islamic State, have proliferated and the lawless country has also become a principal transit point for people from across Africa who want to reach Europe. Oil-rich Libya has been in chaos since the Arab spring movement and Nato bombing campaign that toppled Gaddafi in 2011. Foreign powers – notably Turkey, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Russia – are increasingly active in this new chapter of the war, leading to fears of another drawn-out proxy conflict similar to Syria.

What is the longest running armed conflict