On Wednesday evening, Al-Wasat reported that the Ministry of Defense in the Government of National Unity, led by Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh, intends to carry out these strikes without specifying the targeted areas. The ministry warned against being “near the hideouts of these groups,” prior to executing strikes against what it called “the concentrations of those involved in human trafficking and drug smuggling.” The Ministry of Defense urged residents in nearby areas to immediately stay away from “hideout locations” and not to provide any form of support or shelter to these elements.
Earlier this year, the Western Coast Military Region in Libya conducted strikes in areas within the city of Zawiya, claiming to have “eliminated crime and smuggling dens, resulting in the destruction of several suspicious hideouts.”
Libya suffers from a complex political crisis, with one government in the east led by Osama Hammad, appointed by the House of Representatives, and another in the west led by Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh, who refuses to hand over power except through elections. Presidential elections were scheduled for December 24, 2021, but political disagreements among the rival parties, along with disputes over the election law, prevented them from taking place.
