On Tuesday, Libya’s 5+5 Joint Military Commission (JMC) held a meeting in Tunisia to discuss the withdrawal of mercenaries and foreign forces from Libya.
There are an estimated 23,000 mercenaries in Libya, consisting of fighters from Libya’s southern neighbours, in addition to large numbers of Syrians, according to the latest statistics of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR).
Military sources told Al-Ain News that the JMC is starting a new round of dialogue in Tunisia, to work on removing all foreign forces.
The sources added that the commission will identify the parties that are obstructing the deportation, or providing financing to the mercenaries. This is to prepare a proposal for international sanctions by the UN Security Council.
The JMC demanded guarantees from state representatives to deport the mercenaries, according to a specific timetable. It also expressed its hope that this would take place before the general elections in the country on 24 December.
Earlier this month, the JMC announced that it had reached an agreement with Sudan, Chad, and Niger to withdraw their mercenaries and foreign fighters from Libyan territory.
This came during a meeting held between JMC members and representatives of these countries in Cairo. The meeting was also attended by the Head of the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL), Jan Kubis. Talks focused on the mechanism and ways to permanently remove these mercenaries from Libyan territory.
In its final communiqué, the commission stressed that the representatives expressed their full readiness to coordinate over the exit of all affiliated fighters from Libya, and ensure that they would never return.
On 8 October, the JMC signed a comprehensive Action Plan for the gradual, balanced, and sequenced withdrawal of mercenaries, foreign fighters, and foreign forces from the country.