Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi (C) meets East Libya-based military commander Khalifa Haftar (L) at Al Ittihadiyah Palace in Cairo, Egypt on April 14, 2019. (Photo by Presidency of Egypt / Handout/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on Saturday hosted Libyan military leader Khalifa Haftar, who controls the country’s east, for their first meeting since September 2021.
Sisi’s office said that during their talks he stressed Egypt’s commitment to “ensuring the unity and cohesion of Libya’s national institutions”.
He also urged “coordination between all Libyan parties to crystallise a comprehensive political roadmap” towards long-overdue parliamentary and presidential elections.
Haftar’s last visit to Cairo was a few months before nationwide parliamentary and presidential elections that were later delayed due to disagreements over their legal framework.
Libya, which borders Egypt to the east, is struggling to recover from years of conflict after the 2011 NATO-backed uprising that ended dictator Muammar Gaddafi‘s four-decade rule.
The country remains split between the United Nations-recognised government of Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah in Tripoli and Haftar’s rival authority in the east.
Sisi has been a key backer of Haftar in the past, though they have found themselves on opposite sides of the war in Sudan, raging on both countries’ southern borders.
Cairo has supported the Sudanese military, under army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, while analysts say Haftar has funnelled fuel, weapons and fighters to the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces on behalf of the United Arab Emirates.
Abu Dhabi is a key ally of both Sisi and Haftar, and has denied sending supplies to the RSF.
Sisi on Saturday said “all foreign forces and mercenaries must be expelled from Libyan territory”.
Russian mercenaries have supported Haftar against Dbeibah’s government which is backed by Turkey.
