The Government of National Accord (GNA) of Libya announced the suspension of participation in negotiations on military issues due to shelling of the port of Tripoli by the Libyan National Army on Tuesday.
Libyan National Army leader Marshal Khalifa Haftar said it hit the warehouse of weapons and ammunition at the port of the Libyan capital Tripoli on Tuesday in response to ceasefire violations by terrorist groups. The LNA also announced the destruction of a Turkish ship with weapons and ammunition that arrived at the port of Tripoli.
According to the GNA, the shelling port of Tripoli “is a vital artery for many Libyan cities, through which their residents receive drugs, food, fuel and other things they need”. The GNA noted that “the ongoing attacks on city blocks, the airport, the sea port of Tripoli, as well as the closure of oil ports, are designed to cause a humanitarian crisis and anarchy”.
“In this regard, we announce the suspension of our participation in the talks on military issues that are taking place in Geneva until a decisive position is taken with regard to the aggressor and its violations”, – the GNA said in a statement.
An international conference on Libya was held in Berlin on January 19 with the participation of Russia, the USA, Turkey, Egypt and other countries, as well as the EU and the UN. Both the prime minister of the GNA ruling in Tripoli, Fayez Sarraj, and the LNA commander Haftar were present at the summit, although they failed to organize direct negotiations between them again.
The main outcome of the conference was an appeal by its participants to a ceasefire in Libya and an obligation to refrain from interfering in the conflict, observing the embargo on the supply of arms to the parties to the conflict. In addition, participants in the meeting proposed the establishment of a ceasefire monitoring committee.