Former Tunisian Intelligence Director, Ahmed Shabir, warned of the security situation on the Tunisian borders since 2011. This has been exacerbated by the Libyan conflict ongoing since April 2019.
Shabir, in an interview with The Independent Arabia website, warned of the worsening situation in Tunisia, saying: “In Libya, there are several warring parties, the most dangerous of which are those armed groups that Turkey brings from Syria.”
He also pointed out that smuggling is not a recent phenomenon between Tunisia and Libya, “but what is new today are weapons. We can be sure that there is a link between smuggling in the two countries.”
The Director of Intelligence believed that the greatest danger remained in the city of Sabratah, 70 kilometers from the Tunisian border. It is considered a den for ISIS elements, who wished to build an emirate inside Tunisia, similar to Ben Guerdane. This failed due to the lack of logistical support.
He concluded by saying “the danger today is that these terrorists receive explicit support from Turkey, which makes their danger double.”
Ankara continues to escalate its involvement in the Libyan conflict by supporting the Tripoli-based Government of National Accord (GNA). This is despite Turkey participating in and agreeing to the results of the Berlin Conference held in January. During the conference, foreign states active in Libya agreed to stop interfering in the country and to uphold the UN arms embargo.