Turkey Warns Egypt of ‘Military Adventure’ in Libya

By Staff, Agencies

Turkey warned that Egypt would embark on a “dangerous adventure” if it went ahead with a plan to deploy troops in the North African country.

Top security adviser to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Ibrahim Kalin, issued the warning in an interview with Reuters news agency on Wednesday after the Egyptian parliament gave a green light for possible military intervention in Libya.

Kalin underlined that any Egyptian deployment in the oil-rich African country would hamper efforts to end the conflict and would be risky for Cairo, saying, "I believe it will be a dangerous military adventure for Egypt."

Libya has been beset by chaos since the overthrow and killing of its long-serving ruler Muammar Gaddafi following a NATO operation in 2011.

The conflict has escalated into a regional proxy war fueled by foreign powers pouring weapons and mercenaries into the country.

Tensions escalated further last year after the so-called Libyan National Army [LNA] under rebel commander Khalifa Haftar moved toward Tripoli to seize the city, which was repelled by Libyan government forces.

The UN-backed Libyan government in Tripoli has the support of Turkey, while the LNA based in Benghazi is supported by Russia, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates.

A big escalation in Libya could risk igniting a direct conflict among the foreign powers that have poured in weapons and fighters in violation of an arms embargo.