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Libya

October 22, 2026

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Analysis

What's at stake as Libya's eastern parliament approves Turkey maritime deal

Libya's eastern-based parliament's approval of a long-disputed maritime deal with Turkey marks a strategic win for Ankara as Saddam Hifter seeks Turkish backing for his presidential ambitions, according to analysts.

Ezgi Akin

In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO

US Department of State's senior advisor to the President for Arab and African Affairs Massad Fares Boulos attends a conference for the support of peace and prosperity in the Great Lakes region, in Paris, on October 30, 2025. The international community gathered in Paris on October 30, 2025 to raise awareness about the dire humanitarian situation in the Great Lakes region, aiming to raise hundreds of millions of euros despite a drastic decrease in international aid, particularly from the United States. (Phot

Interview

Trump's Africa adviser denies Libya plan would entrench rival families

The reported unification plan for Libya has been met with pushback in a country torn apart by rival factions and foreign interference.

A commercial vessel is anchored off Yemen's coast at Bab al-Mandeb, in the straits connecting the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean on Sept. 12, 2026.

Explainer

Saudi Yanbu halt deepens oil strain as Europe scrambles for crude

European crude importers are racing to secure new oil shipments as markets brace for the loss of up to 4% of global supplies into October following attacks on Saudi oil infrastructure.

Saddam Hifter meets with Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin

Russia’s Putin hosts Saddam Hifter amid instability in Libya: What to know

Moscow has built a strong relationship with Libya’s eastern camp, as Washington and Ankara pursue efforts to reunify the country’s political and military institutions.

Latest News

Analysis

Libya’s oil revival faces new test as violence returns amid US peace push

Libyan firefighting teams attempt to extinguish a fire at the Zawiya refinery, the second-largest oil refinery in Libya, with a refining capacity of 120,000 barrels per day, after a tank belonging to the state-owned Libyan Brega Oil Company was attacked by unknown perpetrators, in Zawiya, Libya, on Aug. 11, 2026.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Turkey’s Fidan heads to Libya as US-backed unification push gathers pace

Minister of Foreign Affairs Hakan Fidan met with Abdul Hamid Dbeibah, Prime Minister of the Government of National Unity of Libya, in Tripoli on Aug. 11, 2026.

Jonathan Fenton-Harvey

In London, reporting on North Africa and Gulf politics

Mohamed Eljarh

A police officer stands guard in front of the Bardo Museum in Tunis March 24, 2015. The national museum reopened on Tuesday, almost a week after a militant attack which killed 20 foreign visitors. REUTERS/Zoubeir Souissi - RTR4UMIW

The Islamic State in Africa

The Islamic State presence in the depth of the African continent was strengthened after Nigerian movement Boko Haram pledged allegiance to the terrorist group.

Then-General Khalifa Haftar speaks during a news conference in Abyar, east of Benghazi May 31, 2014. Growing frustration over the reality of life in eastern Libya, which contrasts with the promises of politicians, is feeding support for Haftar, who has set himself up as a warrior against Islamist militancy and who some also see as their saviour. Picture taken May 31, 2014. REUTERS/Esam Omran Al-Fetori (LIBYA - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS MILITARY) - RTR4QLUA

Will Hifter's Libyan army fail?

Gen. Khalifa Hifter’s attempt to mobilize an army against the Islamic State in Libya might backfire if its members are comprised of former militiamen who lack discipline.

Members of Libyan pro-government forces, which is backed by the locals, look on in an army camp, in Benghazi February 1, 2015. Violent clashes between Libyan pro-government forces and the Shura Council of Libyan Revolutionaries, an alliance of former anti-Gaddafi rebels, who have joined forces with the Islamist group Ansar al-Sharia, have occurred in the areas surrounding the camp. Picture taken February 1, 2015. REUTERS/Esam Omran Al-Fetori (LIBYA - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS MILITARY) - RTR4NUE6

Libyan minister: Solution to crisis lies in supporting army

In an interview with Al-Monitor, Libyan Minister of Information and Culture Omar al-Qweri stressed that the solution in Libya is not political, but rather military, and can only be achieved by lifting the ban on arming the Libyan army.

Libyans celebrate in Tripoli's landamark Martyrs square on February 17, 2015 the upcoming fourth anniversary of the Libyan revolution which toppled strongman Moamer Kadhafi. Islamist militants have thrived in Libya since Kadhafi was toppled and killed in the NATO-backed 2011 uprising, with authorities struggling to contain dozens of militant groups with diverse motivations and ideologies. AFP PHOTO / MAHMUD TURKIA (Photo credit should read MAHMUD TURKIA/AFP/Getty Images)

Women face setbacks in new Libya

Women in Libya seem to have been better off under Moammar Gadhafi’s rule, when they had better access to education and work and polygamy was virtually obsolete.

A group of Egyptian illegal immigrants, who according to authorities will be deported back to Egypt through the border with Tunisia on Wednesday, are seen being held at the Alkarareem immigration centre in the east of Misrata February 18, 2015. REUTERS/Stringer (LIBYA - Tags: POLITICS SOCIETY IMMIGRATION) - RTR4Q60O

Egyptian workers endangered in Libya

Poor Egyptian workers in Libya have been threatened and killed by Islamic militias, while Egypt has announced its official support for the Libyan army against the terrorists.

People walk past shops at a bazaar in the central Anatolian city of Kayseri February 13, 2015. President Tayyip Erdogan's tirades against the central bank may be stoking turmoil in Turkish financial markets, but they are winning praise from a class of industrialists who have thrived over the past decade and see him as a pillar of their success. Picture taken February 13, 2015. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY - Tags: BUSINESS POLITICS) - RTR4RF73

From 'zero problems' to zero trade

Ankara’s support of the Islamist-controlled National General Congress instead of the government in Tobruk has had dire consequences for Turkish business interests in Libya.

A Libyan army vehicle patrols on a desert road between Libya and Algeria May 29, 2014. Libya's southwestern tip in the Sahara bordering Algeria and Niger has turned into an open door for illegal migrants from sub-Saharan countries heading for Europe, with the chaotic government in Tripoli appearing to have abandoned all control. The revolt that overthrew Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi three years ago emptied Libya's arsenals, flooded the region with guns and dismantled much of the state apparatus, giving wel

Congress starts to question UN arms embargo on Libya

The shift follows a heavy push by Egypt and Jordan after the Islamic State beheading of Coptic Christians.

A child from the town of Tawargha runs in the rain in a refugee camp in Benghazi January 11, 2012. The Tawargha residents, who are waiting to return to their town after reprisals from anti-Gaddafi loyalists after the revolution, say that conditions in the camp are harsh and that their children have not been able to go to school in the new year. REUTERS/Esam Al-Fetori (LIBYA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST SOCIETY) - RTR2W5I6

What did Libyans gain from the revolution?

Four years into the Libyan civil war and the revolution that toppled Moammar Gadhafi’s regime, thousands of Libyans remain displaced in their own country as political, social and economic problems continue to worsen.

Russia's President Vladimir Putin (R) and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi (C) attend a welcoming ceremony upon Putin's arrival in Cairo February 10, 2015. REUTERS/Mikhail Klimentyev/RIA Novosti/Kremlin (EGYPT - Tags: POLITICS) ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS DISTRIBUTED, EXACTLY AS RECEIVED BY REUTERS, AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS - RTR4P0YO

Egypt acts as middleman for Russia-Libya arms deal

Egypt is mediating efforts to supply the Libyan army with Russian weapons to fight the Islamic State, a move that might lead to a end to UN Resolution 1973, which bans the provision of arms to Libya.

Migrants receive assistance after disembarking from the Sierra Leone-flagged vessel Ezadeen at the Corigliano Calabro harbor, southern Italy January 3, 2015. The ship carrying hundreds of migrants arrived in the southern Italian port of Corigliano Calabro on the evening of January 2 after being abandoned by its crew in rough seas in the Mediterranean off Italy's south coast in the second such incident in three days. REUTERS/Antonino Condorelli (ITALY - Tags: SOCIETY IMMIGRATION CRIME LAW POLITICS MARITIM

Is Europe closing door to refugees?

With smuggling tragedies increasing in the Mediterranean, Europe is looking for ways to stem the tide of human smuggling from North Africa.

Libya's internationally recognized Prime Minister Abdullah al-Thinni speaks during an interview with Reuters in Bayda February 15, 2015. Thinni called for the West to launch air strikes to defeat Islamist militants who control Tripoli and have driven his government out of the capital. Speaking hours before Egypt bombed Islamic State targets in Libya in retaliation after militants said they had beheaded 21 Egyptian Christians, Prime Minister Abdullah al-Thinni made a plea for Western military intervention in

Could Libya's IS suck Egypt into endless war?

The massacre committed by the Islamic State against Egyptian Copts has raised talk about a new military intervention in Libya, while Egypt is calling for military action against the terrorists.

The representative of the National Transitional Council, New Libyan Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates Aref Ali Nayed (L) speaks during a news conference next to Libyan Stabilization Minister Ahmed Jehani (R) at Libyan consulate, in Dubai August 21, 2011. REUTERS/Mosab Omar (UNITED ARAB EMIRATES - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTR2Q6H4

Islamic State covets Libya as global terror base, envoy warns

Libyan diplomat Aref Ali Nayed urges Washington to step up its involvement in the country.

United Arab Emirates