Last week’s deadly deluge, which hit the eastern Libyan
seashore city of Derna, killing thousands and leaving many more homeless, was
brought about by a natural disaster that caught Libyans unaware. But while the
uncommon Mediterranean hurricane that hit eastern Libya did the initial damage,
it also detonated a silent bomb: the collapse of the two crumbling dams south
of Derna, which destroyed half the city and did most of the killing.
اضافة اعلان
A broken country and a failed state
Derna has become a symbol of how post-Gaddafi Libya has
become: a broken country and a failed state. Derna itself has gone through a
decade of turmoil and bloodshed after the collapse of the regime. It had become
a base for paramilitary militias embroiled in tribal and religious wars against
countrymen. Later it became a stronghold for various extremist groups,
including Daesh in 2014 and became a base for the group until it was driven out
by a coalition of Libyan forces in 2015.
Today, it is under control of the transitional
government of Eastern Libya based in Sirte, which owes allegiance to the
self-styled Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar. At 79, he was once Gaddafi’s most
trusted soldier before they parted ways following the Chad war disaster. Later,
Haftar conspired against his mentor only to fail and be whisked away by the CIA
to America, where he became a citizen. Following the 2011 uprising, Haftar
returned to Libya, where he could expel the jihadists from Eastern Libya and take
control of Benghazi. His ambition to rule as the country’s strongman was
derailed when his army, aptly called the Libyan National Army, was repulsed at
the outskirts of Tripoli in the west after Turkey’s intervention.
Never able to put together a working government in the
east
He took control of Derna after a long and bitter siege.
But Haftar was never able to put together a working government in the east,
despite backing from a number of Arab countries and the Russians. There were
many warnings over the sad state of the two Derna dams, even days before Storm
Daniel was to arrive. These warnings were never heeded.
That is not to say that the UN-recognized government, based in Tripoli, is doing much better. Bitter rivalries and personal agendas have derailed attempts to unify the country and hold presidential and legislative elections. Successive governments failed to establish control over the entire country and faced opposition from rival factions based in other parts of Libya. More than once fighting between armed militias, with opposing loyalties, broke out in Tripoli bringing life in the capital to a halt
Now, Haftar and his aides want to take credit for the
rescue and recovery operations in Derna while skirting responsibility. But
most, in this once home to 120,000 people, point the finger at the ruler of
Benghazi.
Haftar has resisted pressure to hold presidential and
legislative elections under a law that would have favored others, especially
Gaddafi’s son Saif Al-Islam. He has control over the parliament in Tobruk,
which withdrew confidence from the Tripoli-based administration of interim
Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibah in September 2021, thus creating an impasse.
Under the UN, presidential and parliamentary elections
were set to occur in Libya on December 24, 2021. However, on December 21, 2021,
the High National Elections Commission dissolved Libya’s electoral committees
and announced the indefinite postponement of these elections. The
postponement resulted from disagreements about holding elections and
a failure to reach a consensus regarding the electoral
framework.
One thing that Haftar has been saying is that he is
fighting Islamist extremists, including those supporting the government in
Tripoli. This is one reason why he is getting support from outside.
That is not to say that the UN-recognized government,
based in Tripoli, is doing much better. Bitter rivalries and personal agendas
have derailed attempts to unify the country and hold presidential and
legislative elections. Successive governments failed to establish control over
the entire country and faced opposition from rival factions based in other
parts of Libya. More than once fighting between armed militias, with opposing
loyalties, broke out in Tripoli bringing life in the capital to a halt.
In addition, while being recognized as the legitimate
government, it had failed to build strong state institutions in Tripoli,
including the police and judiciary. Weakening it further is that control over
the oil fields, the oil crescent, and ports in the northeastern part of
the country along the coast of the Gulf of Sidra has been contested many times.
The region has been under the control of various factions and entities, making
it difficult for the Tripoli government to gain access to oil sales.
And with turmoil, chaos, and foreign meddling comes
corruption. A number of neutral sources have accused the Tripoli government of
corruption, with politicians and officials accused of embezzlement and misuse
of public funds. Foreign powers, such as Turkey, Russia, Egypt and others, have
played a significant role in the conflict in Libya, providing support to rival
factions and prolonging the crisis.
The Derna debacle, apocalyptic in proportion, has become a stark reminder of the deep political and social divisions that have torn the country apart. The sad fact is that the absence of a central government that can take responsibility for the entire country and embark on a comprehensive plan to rebuild afflicted cities and towns and maintain a dilapidated infrastructure while nursing social scars means that Libya’s road to rehabilitation will not materialize anytime soon.
What it all boils down to is that this oil-rich country
of no more than 7 million inhabitants, strategically located in North Africa
and close to European shores, rich in oil and gas, has not been able to recover
from the 2011 uprising--and the ensuing civil war--and the ominous decision by
NATO to step in to topple Gaddafi.
Derna debacle
The Derna debacle, apocalyptic in proportion, has become
a stark reminder of the deep political and social divisions that have torn the
country apart. The sad fact is that the absence of a central government that
can take responsibility for the entire country and embark on a comprehensive
plan to rebuild afflicted cities and towns and maintain a dilapidated
infrastructure while nursing social scars means that Libya’s road to
rehabilitation will not materialize anytime soon.
Partition is not the answer for Libya, nor is
maintaining the current status quo. Libyan leaders must come to their senses
and find the middle ground to overcome differences and save their country from
the next natural or man-made disaster. The Derna catastrophe could have been
averted if a strong national unity government was in charge. This is the
message that both Tripoli and Benghazi must accept.
The current political impasse must end, and foreign
players must stop meddling. That may be wishful thinking at this stage. But
Libyan patriots must be reminded: Type failed states in Google search today,
and Libya, along with Lebanon, Iraq, Somalia, and Yemen, will score top hits.
Libya shouldn’t be on the list for many reasons, and the Libyan people don’t
deserve to be there.
Until divisions are bridged, and a stable, inclusive
government is established, the country will continue at risk of further
violence and instability.
Osama Al Sharif is a journalist and political
commentator based in Amman.
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