War & Peace: Libya’s Battle for Tripoli
War & Peace: Libya’s Battle for Tripoli
Podcast / Middle East & North Africa 1 minute

War & Peace: Libya’s Battle for Tripoli

This week on War & Peace, Olga Oliker and Hugh Pope talk to Claudia Gazzini, Crisis Group's Libya expert, about the role of foreign powers in the Libyan conflict and the fighting around Tripoli after the UN called for a global ceasefire to mobilise against the pandemic.

Season 1 Episode 16: Libya’s Battle for Tripoli

Libya has been in a near constant state of war since Colonel Muammar Gaddafi was toppled back in 2011, morphing into local conflicts between pro- and anti-Islamists. On 4 April last year, forces commanded by General Haftar laid siege to Tripoli, the home of the internationally recognised government. Fighting on the city’s outskirts has been terribly destructive. Meanwhile weapons continue to flow into the country from foreign backers.

The onset of COVID-19 has not broken the diplomatic paralysis that pervades the conflict. UN Security Council members are divided, NATO countries support different sides and the EU’s focus on migration has hampered its ability to develop any coordinated, effective response. The UN call for a global ceasefire to mobilise against the pandemic was followed by an upsurge of fighting around Tripoli.

Claudia Gazzini joins Hugh and Olga on War & Peace this week to discuss realities on the ground, the role of foreign powers and much more. Tune in now!

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