In Germany, two former Bundeswehr soldiers were detained, who were planning to create a group of 100 to 150 mercenaries to participate in the civil war in Yemen. The arrests were carried out by special forces of the federal police in the Breisgau-Hochschwarzwald district and in Munich, the federal prosecutor’s office said on Wednesday, October 20.
Two former airborne paratroopers are accused of attempting to create a terrorist group. According to the investigation, they decided to create a PMC in early 2021 in order to offer their assistance to Saudi Arabia, which is supporting the government of this country in the war in Yemen. On each mercenary, the detainees hoped to earn 40 thousand euros a month. The group planned to recruit former Bundeswehr soldiers and former police officers.
One of the suspects has already contacted at least seven candidates. The first information on these two ex-soldiers, who worked, contrary to the ban, for the security company Asgaard, came from the Military Counterintelligence Service (MAD). A spokesman for the German Ministry of Defense said that the investigative bodies of various departments are closely cooperating with each other in the investigation of this case.
Mercenaries for the war in Yemen
According to the German federal prosecutor’s office, the detainees intended to send mercenaries to the civil war in Yemen in order to achieve peace negotiations between the Houthi rebels and the Yemeni government. One of the suspects tried several times to contact the Saudi authorities and offer them his services, but they did not respond.
According to the conclusion of the prosecutor’s office, both detainees were aware that “the unit under their command will inevitably be forced to commit murders,” and there will be casualties among the civilian population.
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Libya: civil war and geopolitical conflict
Ten-year war “all against all”
In North African Libya, there has been a civil war for almost a decade. A variety of forces are involved in it: nationalist militants, Islamists, Tuareg nomads, local tribes, foreign mercenaries. The situation becomes even more confusing due to the fact that the two main warring factions receive the support of various countries. This makes the conflict international and geopolitical.
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Libya: civil war and geopolitical conflict
It all started with the overthrow of Gaddafi
The armed struggle for power in Libya has not stopped since the overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011 during the uprising that broke out as part of the Arab Spring and was supported by an international military operation. In this photo, a bloody dictator who ruled for four decades tears up the UN Charter during his infamous speech in 2009 at the General Assembly of this organization.
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Libya: civil war and geopolitical conflict
Oil and gas in the desert and at sea
One of the main causes of the civil war is the rich reserves of oil and gas. Concessions for their production onshore and offshore were received by various foreign companies, including the German Wintershall (one of its facilities in the photo) and the Russian concern Gazprom, which have had a joint venture in Libya since 2008. Now the industry is in decline, for example, the undersea Greenstream gas pipeline to Italy does not work.
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Libya: civil war and geopolitical conflict
Key figure: Khalifa Haftar
Another reason for the civil war is the struggle between the supporters of the Islamic way of development and their opponents, which gave rise to the dual power that has reigned since 2014. The Islamists are entrenched in the capital of Tripoli in the west of the country, in the east they are opposed by the so-called parliament in Tobruk. On his behalf, the 76-year-old military leader Khalifa Haftar, the commander of the self-proclaimed “Libyan National Army”, rules.
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Libya: civil war and geopolitical conflict
They control almost the entire country
The militants of the “Libyan National Army” have reasons to be photographed in the pose of the winners. Haftar’s troops conquered the vast majority of the country’s territory, except for the desert south, which is controlled by local tribes, and several areas in the very west around Tripoli. However, they have not yet succeeded in capturing the official capital of the country, despite repeated assault attempts since April 2019.
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Libya: civil war and geopolitical conflict
Russian ally and CIA agent
Russian mercenaries from the Wagner PMC are fighting on the side of Haftar. The self-proclaimed marshal, who made a military career under Gaddafi, but then participated in his overthrow, studied in the USSR at the Frunze Academy and now enjoys the support of Russia (in the photo: Moscow, November 2016). Egypt and France also staked on it. He, according to media reports, has US citizenship, where he collaborated with the CIA.
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Libya: civil war and geopolitical conflict
Saraja is supported by the UN and Turkey
The official leader of Libya, recognized by the international community in the person of the UN, is the head of the Government of National Accord in Tripoli, Faiz Saraj. It is actively supported, for example, by Italy and Turkey. Its president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, concluded an agreement with Libya, in which he significantly changed the borders in the Mediterranean Sea in favor of his country (and to the detriment of Greece).
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Libya: civil war and geopolitical conflict
Defense of Tripoli with Turkish assistance
In January 2020, Ankara deployed the Turkish military to Tripoli to strengthen the defenses of the Libyan capital, as the units fighting on the side of the Government of National Accord (photo) have been severely weakened by last year’s battles with Haftar’s troops. As a result, the danger of direct clashes between the regular Turkish military and the Russian Wagner mercenaries has sharply increased.
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Libya: civil war and geopolitical conflict
Defeat local IS
Another side of the civil strife in Libya was the Islamist extremists from ISIS. Taking advantage of the emerging dual power, supporters of the “Islamic State” seized the port and university city of Sirte in early 2015. However, in the fall of 2016, they were defeated by troops loyal to the Islamist authorities in Tripoli (photo) and went underground. The city that passed from hand to hand was badly damaged.
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Libya: civil war and geopolitical conflict
Berlin Summit: Finding a Solution
On January 19, 2020, the leaders of more than ten countries and heads of international organizations, including the UN, arrived in Berlin for an international conference on Libya. Photo: Russian President Vladimir Putin, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi. Among the results of the summit are the commitment of its participants to no longer supply the parties to the conflict with weapons and the mechanism for monitoring the ceasefire.
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Libya: civil war and geopolitical conflict
The European Union is concerned about the flow of refugees
The EU does not have a unified position on Libya; the goals of individual countries diverge sharply. However, all EU members are interested in the fact that it ceased to be a springboard for sending illegal migrants to Europe, many of whom die in the Mediterranean Sea. This migration and humanitarian problem cannot be resolved without ending the war in Libya and restoring its statehood.
Author: Andrey Gurkov
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