The former Libyan Minister of Interior, Ashour Shuwail, claimed that the Turkish government is seeking to resolve its economic crisis by exploiting oil and gas wealth in Libya.
In an interview with Asharq News, on Friday, Shuwail said Libya is a rich country with promising potential and a distinguished strategic location. However, he said that the oil-rich country is suffering from deteriorating education and health conditions.
Shuwail pointed out to the political and constitutional blockage in Libya, noting that it was a result of officials clinging to power for many years, which helped spread corruption.
He confirmed that the incorrect diagnosis for Libya’s problem led to the continuation of the crisis in the country. “For more than 10 years, the international community has tried to bring Libya to safety, but those attempts failed due to the incorrect diagnosis of the problem in Libya,” he said.
The former security official claimed that the Central Bank of Libya (CBL) “is under the control of ideological personalities, who sponsor Turkey’s interests and ambitions in Libya.”
He stressed the importance of the international community helping the Libyan people to hold presidential and parliamentary elections as soon as possible. He called on the Libyan parties to move to pressure for the holding of those elections.
Shuwail also accused “some countries” of taking advantage of the continuation of the crisis in Libya, to obtain oil and gas, noting that there are suspicions about United Kingdom benefiting from Libyan oil.
He said that the Libyan governments used militias to stay in power, and they paid millions of dinars to those militias. “The militia crisis ends with stopping financial support for it,” he confirmed.
“There are militias equipped with weapons and are stationed in Tripoli. Anyone who tries to move against Turkey, even in a peaceful movement, can be shot,” the Libyan former Minister said.
He proposed dividing Libya into three regions with a unified state. “Libya is a country with a vast area that is difficult to govern centrally,” he explained.
Responding to the far-right victory in Italy, the Libyan former Minister said it could pose a threat to the migrant crisis. “Libya is a transit country for illegal immigration, and Italy and some European countries are seeking to return foreign migrants to Libya,” he explained.
He called for developing the source countries of migration such as Sudan, Niger and others.