EU Diplomatic Setback Coincides with Heightened Military Activity Near Tripoli
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The United Nations on Wednesday urged all Libyan factions to refrain from inflammatory rhetoric and military maneuvers around Tripoli, warning of the risk of renewed conflict, as tensions mount following a visible military buildup in and around the capital.
The latest deployment of armed groups comes just weeks after Prime Minister Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah ordered the dismantling of irregular forces operating in Tripoli, prompting the city’s worst clashes in years. At least eight civilians were killed during the ensuing violence between rival groups.
“The Mission continues its efforts to help de-escalate the situation and calls on all parties to engage in good faith towards this end,” the U.N. Mission in Libya said on social media, adding that recently deployed forces “must withdraw without delay.”
Tripoli has remained a fragmented landscape of competing militias despite the formation of the Government of National Unity (GNU) under Dbeibah through a U.N.-backed process in 2021. However, the GNU’s authority is no longer recognized by the eastern-based House of Representatives in Benghazi, underscoring Libya’s ongoing institutional divide.
This fractured governance was brought into stark relief earlier this week when a high-level European Union delegation, including EU Commissioner for Internal Affairs and Migration Magnus Brunner, was denied entry to eastern Libya due to what EU officials described as a “protocol issue.” Delegates from Italy, Malta, and Greece were also turned away upon arrival in Benghazi.
The EU delegation had aimed to engage with officials aligned with military commander Khalifa Haftar and the parallel administration led by Osama Hamad, shortly after meeting with Dbeibah’s internationally recognized government in the west. The thwarted visit was part of broader EU efforts to address rising irregular migration flows originating from Libya’s territory.
“The EU will maintain open channels of communication and we will continue working in a Team Europe approach with all actors involved,” said EU spokesperson Markus Lammert.
The eastern administration earlier this week announced a directive requiring all foreign delegations to seek prior approval before entering or traveling within Libya — a move widely interpreted as an assertion of autonomy from the Tripoli-based government.
Since the 2011 NATO-backed uprising that ousted Muammar Gaddafi, Libya has remained deeply unstable, split since 2014 between rival factions in the east and west. Though large-scale warfare has been held at bay since a 2020 truce, the risk of fragmentation remains high. The recent military mobilizations and diplomatic obstructions point to enduring divisions that continue to undermine both domestic reconciliation and international engagement.
As the international community presses for stability and coordination, the juxtaposition of military posturing in the west and political obstruction in the east raises renewed concerns about Libya’s trajectory — and the prospects for a unified state.
