Erdogan on mercenaries in Libya: “The elements of the Syrian factions present in Libya, alongside the Turkish forces, is as an honor for them.”
Advertise Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan “The elements of the Syrian factions present in the Libyan capital, Tripoli, alongside the Turkish forces, see their presence there as an honor.”
Speaking on behalf of those mercenaries, Erdogan said at a press conference in Ankara on Tuesday: “Those coming from Syria from the Syrian National Army have a common goal. They are there within the framework of these common goals. Our brothers who are with us in Syria see their presence there with us as an honor for them.”
The fall of two Turkish soldiers
He also acknowledged the fall of two Turkish soldiers in the Libyan capital, Tripoli, without giving further details.
This comes after he announced, on Saturday, the fall of a number of Turkish soldiers in Libya.
Meanwhile, the Libyan National Army announced on Sunday that it had killed 16 Turkish soldiers in the past weeks.
It is noteworthy that Turkey, which has repeatedly denied in the past that it brought Syrian mercenaries to the Libyan capital, or the presence of its soldiers there, returned and approved publicly a few days ago, by its president, the presence of Turkish soldiers and Syrian fighters in Tripoli.
Turkey provides military support to the Al-Wefaq government, which is based in the capital, Tripoli. Last year, the two sides signed a military cooperation agreement, after which Turkey sent forces and fighters from the allied Syrian factions to Libya, to confront the Libyan army led by Khalifa Haftar, who has been campaigning since last April to drive the extremist militias out of the capital.
However, sending more Turkish mercenaries and weapons to Libya, as the Libyan army has repeatedly emphasized, is inconsistent with what was agreed by world powers during a summit in Berlin last month, on the need to stop hostilities and ban weapons.
