G5 leaders express concern over lack of plan to withdraw mercenaries from Libya
Tripoli, Libya (PANA) - The heads of state of the G5 Sahel have, at the end of the 5th extraordinary session, expressed their deep concern about the absence of a plan to withdraw foreign mercenaries in Libya, estimated at nearly 30,000 fighters, for the security of the G5 Sahel countries and the sub-region.
This is contained in the final statement adopted last Friday by the heads of state of the G5 Sahel member countries who met by video conference at the invitation of the President of the Transitional Military Council of Chad, General Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno.
In this regard, they noted that a meeting of the UN Security Council on the risks of dispersal of mercenaries present in Libya to the countries of the region was held on 27 April 2021 at the request of the African members of the Security Council (Kenya, Niger and Tunisia).
They also disclosed that in the final statement of 19 June 2021 in Accra, the ECOWAS Conference of Heads of State and Government expressed concern about the destabilising effects of the operations of mercenary groups from Libya and called for concerted international action for the urgent resolution of this issue, involving the disarmament of mercenary groups.
The G5 leaders also recalled the concern expressed by Sudan on 15 June 2021 about the prospect of the return of mercenaries from Libya to their country, especially if these fighters return with their weapons.
They welcomed the commitments made by the stakeholders on the occasion of the Berlin Conference II on Libya on 23 June 2021.
The Berlin II Conference on Libya reaffirmed the need for general elections to be held on 24 December in accordance with the roadmap drawn up by the Libyan Political Dialogue Forum under the auspices of the United Nations, as well as the departure of mercenaries, combatants and foreign forces.
The G5 Sahel heads of state specifically requested that the UN and Libya communicate the plan for the orderly withdrawal of foreign armed militias from Libya and help secure the G5 Sahel borders during the withdrawal phase.
They pointed out that the regional context is marked by the worsening of terrorist activism in the Sahel and the potential consequences of the UN-mandated withdrawal of foreign armed mercenaries from Libyan territory, which poses a threat to the stability of the Sahel and the sub-region.
This context is also characterised by the prospect of reconfiguring the French force in the Sahel, refocused on the fight against terrorism and on strengthened military cooperation with national armies.
Regarding the security situation in the region, the G5 Sahel heads of state expressed concern about the resurgence of terrorist activity in the Sahel and the threats to the G5 Sahel countries and the sub-region.
They welcomed the adoption of UN Security Council Resolution 2570 of 16 April 2021, calling on all parties to the conflict in Libya to ensure the full implementation of the ceasefire agreement of 23 October 2020 and urging all Member States to respect and support this process, including by withdrawing all foreign forces and mercenaries from Libyan territory without delay.
The G5 Sahel Heads of State expressed their concern about the persistence of the terrorist threat in the sub-region, stressing the importance of active monitoring by all countries in the region and of collective and energetic action to counter it.
In this regard, they called for the continuation of a joint effort, reaffirming their full mobilisation in the framework of this collective fight through active and participatory negotiations with the partners of the international coalition for the Sahel to provide the Joint Force with the capacities that are indispensable to the Force's missions and which the G5 Sahel countries do not have.
-0- PANA BY/IS/BBA/MA 11July2021
