Libyan Army

See also: Libyan Army (1951–2011) and Libyan National Army

Libyan Army
الجيش الليبي
Libyan Army Flag
Active1951 (Cyrenaica Liberation Army)
2016 (current form)
Country Libya
Allegiance

Formerly

TypeArmy
RoleLand warfare
Size
  • 6000 (Greater Tripoli, Aug 2019)[1]: 7 
  • 2200–2400 (Sirte, Aug 2019)[1]: 8 
Part ofLibyan Armed Forces
Garrison/HQTripoli
ColorsBlack, red
Commanders
Commander-in ChiefMohamed al-Menfi
Chief of General StaffMohammad Ali al-Haddad

The Libyan Army[2] (Arabic: الجيش الليبي) is the brand for a number of separate military forces in Libya, which were under the command of the internationally recognised Government of National Accord (GNA) and the Government of National Unity (GNU).

Since December 2015 the groups of the Libyan Army has been nominally subordinated to the internationally recognised Government of National Accord (GNA) based in Tripoli. Due to the instability in the country in 2011 civil war and the outbreak of a new conflict in 2014, the Libyan ground forces remain structurally divided, with components constituting the Tobruk-based Libyan National Army (LNA) under the command of Khalifa Haftar.[3] The forces loyal to the GNA have been fighting against various other factions in Libya, including the Islamic State.[4][5] Some efforts have been made to create a truly national army, but most of the forces under the Tripoli government's command consist of various militia groups, such as the Tripoli Protection Force, and local factions from cities like Misrata and Zintan.[6][7]

  1. ^ a b Lacher, Wolfram (2019). "Who is fighting whom in Tripoli? How the 2019 civil war is transforming Libya's military landscape" (PDF). Security Assessment in North Africa Briefing Paper. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 November 2019. Retrieved 11 November 2019.
  2. ^ Assad, Abdulkader (8 October 2019). "Al-Sarraj orders military support for Libyan Army forces on frontlines". The Libya Observer. Archived from the original on 15 November 2019. Retrieved 15 November 2019.
  3. ^ Ali H. M.Abo Rezeg (20 March 2018). Cairo eyes unification of Libyan military establishment. Anadolu Agency.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference Reuters was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Nicholas Norbrook (22 June 2016). Libyan army gains ground against IS in Sirte. The Africa Report.
  6. ^ Wehrey, Frederic (19 March 2019). A Minister, a General, and the Militias: Libya's Shifting Balance of Power. The New York Review of Books.
  7. ^ Dozens dead after days of clashes near Libyan capital. France24. Published 31 August 2018.