Haftar’s Son Reported to Visit “Israeli” Entity, Offer Ties in Return for Backing
By Staff, Agencies
The son of Libyan warlord Khalifa Haftar reportedly visited the “Israeli” entity last week for a secret meeting with “Israeli” officials in which he offered to establish diplomatic relations between the two countries in return for "Israeli" support.
Saddam Haftar, who is said to be eyeing Libya’s presidency in its December 23 elections, landed at Ben Gurion Airport last Monday on a private French-made Dassault Falcon jet, which stopped briefly in the “Israeli” entity on its way from Dubai to Libya, the “Israeli” Haaretz daily reported Monday.
The paper said it was not known which “Israeli” officials he met during the short visit but that he had previously been in contact with the “Tevel” department of the Mossad spy agency, which deals with countries the entity doesn’t have relations with.
According to the report, Haftar carried a message from his father requesting “Israeli” “military and diplomatic assistance” in return for a pledge to establish a normalization process between Libya and the “Israeli” entity akin to the Abraham Accords establishing relations between the the entity and United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco.
The “Israeli” entity has no official ties with Libya, which was a staunch supporter of the Palestinian Cause, especially under dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was overthrown in 2011.
Libya has been in turmoil since 2011 when a civil war toppled long-time dictator Gaddafi, who was later killed. The country has since split between rival administrations in the east and the west, each backed by armed groups and foreign governments.
In a rare interview with an “Israeli” newspaper last year, a senior Libyan official with Haftar’s eastern-based government called on the “Israeli” entity’s for support.
“We never were and never will be enemies, and we hope you will support us. It is only circumstance which has separated us up until this point,” Abdul Salam al-Badri, deputy prime minister in the government affiliated with, Haftar told Makor Rishon.
