On Friday, the Turkish government revealed that it had evacuated 62 Turkish citizens working in Libya due to the spread of COVID-19.
So far, Turkey has issued no statements regarding its intention to evacuate hundreds, and possibly thousands, of Syrian fighters who were sent to Libya to fight with the Government of National Accord (GNA) against the Libyan National Army (LNA).
Earlier reports indicated that Turkey sent at least two thousand Syrian fighters to fight in Libya, promising they would receive salaries of up to $2,000 per month.
Some of these fighters have reported that Turkish officials told them they would fight Russians in Libya. However, it was clear from the onset that they would face the threat of the Coronavirus alone.
So far, Libya has announced 49 cases and one death from the virus. Nonetheless, the conflict in the country may complicate efforts to reveal the true number of cases.
The Syrian observer, Amjad Salameh, told Al-Hurra that Turkey promised Syrian fighters they would obtain Turkish citizenship in exchange for their participation in the Libyan conflict, however, in light of the coronavirus outbreak, Erdogan has ignored these fighters and has begun to evacuate Turkish citizens.
According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights(SOHR), Turkey has already returned some of these fighters to Syria for burial after being killed in the fighting in Libya. There have been no reports of Syrian fighters being brought to Turkey to protect them from the virus or to obtain citizenship.
The Turkish and Libyan governments initially denied reports that Syrian fighters had been recruited for combat in Libya, but video, press interviews, and eyewitness reports have confirmed that the number of Syrian combatants in Libya could well exceed 3,500.
It is difficult for Turkey to evacuate Syrian fighters in light of the fighting intensificating in Libya.
Tunisian journalist Jumah Qasimi says that armed groups loyal to Libyan Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj are planning a new attack on the Al Watiya airbase with Turkish support. The airbase is located 140 kilometers west of Tripoli.
“There has been a large flow of Turkish soldiers and weapons over the past weeks to Libya,” he said, “Turkish officers conduct military operations and appear to be directly involved in the conflict.”