2024-03-28 18:40:00
Libyan officials said that the smuggling of subsidized oil to the Rapid Support Forces is fueling the ongoing war in Sudan, describing the smuggling operations as “rampant.”
According to the British newspaper The Guardian, Presidential Council President Mohamed Al-Menfi will begin an investigation this week, which will also include widespread fuel smuggling operations and the main beneficiaries of them.
The newspaper explained that the accusations range from “extravagance to corruption,” adding that it is “not only an internal Libyan issue.”
The newspaper quoted Libyan officials as saying that “large-scale smuggling helps provide fuel for the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces fighting in Sudan, a point highlighted in a recent report submitted to the United Nations Security Council.”
The newspaper warned that some of the money may also go indirectly to the Russian-backed Wagner Group, which has now been renamed the “African Legion.”
A Libyan official told the Guardian, “The Wagner Group is sponsoring this fuel across the border into Sudan, and if we close the border between Libya and Sudan, the war in Sudan will end. It is not a war of advanced technology as is the case in Ukraine, it is an old war with four-wheel drive vehicles, and without fuel.” “It will end.”
Although Libya is an oil-rich country, it imports most of its refined fuel needs because its small local refineries do not produce enough to meet local needs, and instead of direct support, the government in Tripoli sells imported fuel at heavily subsidized prices. Gasoline is often sold at a discount of up to 90% from the market price.
Fuel oils, which include heating oil, diesel oil and heavy fuel, are sold on average 70% cheaper than the government purchase cost.
Officials say that up to 40% of imported fuel – worth billions – is then re-exported and smuggled out of the country to make a profit.
Last updated: March 27, 2024 – 19:02
Suggest a correction
2024-03-28 18:40:00