Tageschau: EU Flirts with Autocrat in Eastern Libya over Migration

The European Union plans to cooperate more closely with the regime in eastern Libya in order to close the refugee route to Crete, but experts warn that the EU is once again leaving itself at the mercy of an autocrat, writes Germany’s Tageschau today.

The news program of Germany’s public broadcaster ARD writes on its website that confidential documents show the EU intends to move closer to Khalifa Haftar, who, together with his sons and his local militia, rules eastern Libya and fights against the internationally recognized government in Tripoli. 

Human rights organizations accuse Haftar of war crimes, and the EU does not recognize his parallel authority in eastern Libya. “However, the militia leader now holds one trump card—refugees,” writes Tageschau. 

“Haftar and his sons are able to open or close these migration routes at will, and essentially, one exposes oneself to blackmail. And the EU is now agreeing to this,” said Wolfram Lacher, Libya expert at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs, to Tageschau.

Documents obtained by ARD television and the newspaper Spiegel show that the EU, among other things, plans to finance the training of the eastern Libyan coast guard, provide it with radar equipment, and establish a maritime rescue coordination center in Benghazi. 

The goal is clearly stated in the document—to curb migration, and so-called technical talks have been ongoing for some time, including with eastern Libyan officials, the website reports.

Internal documents also show that the EU is aware it is exposing itself to blackmail, and a statement from the German Foreign Ministry during talks in Brussels is cited, noting that Haftar is evidently using migrants as a means to achieve his goals.

Tageschau writes that in several European countries, for example in Greece, bilateral training of forces from eastern Libya has already begun, and among them are individuals identified as members of the most notorious Libyan militia unit, the Tarek Ben Zeyad Brigade, whose commander is Khalifa Haftar’s son, Saddam Haftar.

This brigade, known by the abbreviation TBZ, is accused by humanitarian organizations of being even more brutal than others and responsible for war crimes. In one report, Frontex states that its members forcibly stopped boats with migrants and fired at refugees.

The European Commission responded to journalists’ inquiries that it has no contact with TBZ, and that the Union’s sole aim is to “manage migration and at the same time improve conditions for migrants.”

However, expert Wolfram Lacher says it is common knowledge that real power in eastern Libya is in the hands of Khalifa Haftar’s sons, which also means units like TBZ. “If you cooperate with them, then you are cooperating with criminals, war criminals, and human traffickers,” Lacher assessed, as reported by Tageschau.