Libya: Full Civil War?

I sort of thought that Libya was already in a full civil war, but maybe not. Al Jazeera has the following quote from United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres:

"Unless action is taken in the near term, it is highly likely that the current conflict will escalate into full civil war," Guterres said on Thursday in his latest report on the UN Support Mission in Libya.

"I urge all parties to stop using explosive weapons, including by aerial bombardment or shelling, in populated areas because of their likely indiscriminate effects," the secretary-general said.

"A political solution to the Libyan conflict requires the full and united support of the international community," Guterres said.

"I am concerned by the presence of foreign fighters and mercenaries being employed by parties to the conflict in Libya, as well as by the influx of weapons to the country," he added, calling for strict adherence to an arms embargo in place since 2011.

Call me a little confused, but hasn't Libya been in a full civil war for a very long time. At a minimum, since April when the Libyan National Army (LNA) marched on Tripoli. If this isn't a full blown civil war, let's at least see how LNA's forces are doing across Libya.



How are things going in southern Libya?

Reuters in early August reported that the LNA did a drone strike in Murzuq, which is a town in the south of Libya. The article reported that the LNA had captured the city earlier in the year when they were attempting to control the southern oil fields.

I wrote the following in a prior blog:

This strike indicates that after Haftar's forces took control of the south and then moved their focus to Tripoli, that the Chad rebel forces came back to claim at least some control over the south. 

OilPrice reported on August 20th:

Libya’s eastern strongman General Khalifa Haftar is boosting his military presence around the country’s largest oil field, Sharara in southern Libya, fearing that an attack on the oil field by rival militias could kick the eastern Libyan forces out of the oil infrastructure they currently control.

Haftar-affiliated forces, with a convoy of 75 military vehicles, arrived at the Sharara oil field on Monday, The Libya Observer reported, quoting a military source as telling local media outlets.

According to The Libya Observer, the forces loyal to Haftar are concerned that a rival army, the South Protection Force of the government of national accord, could kick the eastern-affiliated forces out of oil fields.

How are things going around Tripoli?

Reuters reported on June 26th that the Government of National Accord (GNA), which is the Tripoli forces, had pushed LNA forces out of the town of Gharyan, which is south of Tripoli.

Reuters had this to say on August 26th:

Another 10 members of the Tripoli-based Government of National Accord’s (GNA) forces were wounded, their spokesman Mustafa Majae said, and the rival Libyan National Army (LNA) had taken control of “some military points” near Gharyan, some 90 km (56 miles) south of the capital. 

So General Haftar of the GNA looks to be playing defense in southern Libya and trying to re-capture lost territory around Tripoli. That sounds like a standstill to me. Maybe we don't meet the definition of a full civil war, but for Haftar, his forces are stuck. Perhaps they are just consolidating their positions during the summer months and we'll see more movement when temperatures cool.