Germany deploys 250 soldiers for Libyan arms embargo mission
A German frigate carrying 250 soldiers has departed at the
start of a five-month mission as part of the European Union efforts to enforce
a United Nations embargo on the flow of weapons into war-torn Libya.
The Hamburg frigate set sail for the Mediterranean from the
port city of Wilhelmshaven on Tuesday.
The EU's Irini mission, launched in May, is tasked with
preventing the flow of weapons into Libya as well as gathering information on
illegal oil exports from the country and disrupting people smuggling in the
region.
Satellites and planes are also being used to monitor the
arms embargo.
The Hamburg's crew members are set to return on December 20
and may not see any days on land until then, due to precautions regarding the
coronavirus pandemic.
"We are facing a mission that will present the ship and
crew with previously unknown challenges in several respects," Commander
Jan Fitschen said at the start of the mission.
It is taking place on "difficult political and
operational terrain", he said.
Alleged violators
Countries accused of violating the embargo include Turkey,
Russia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Libya has been engulfed by civil war since the overthrow of
longtime leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, with the conflict increasingly turning
into a proxy war.
Turkey supports the government of Prime Minister Fayez
Serraj, which is vying for power with renegade military commander Khalifa
Haftar, who is backed by several militias.
Egypt, Russia and the UAE are on Haftar's side.
Ankara, in turn, accuses the UAE of supplying Haftar with
weapons, and argues that the EU's Operation Irini disproportionately targets
Serraj.
International attempts of mediation have so far proved
unsuccessful, including the latest Libya summit held in Berlin in January.
Recently, Germany, France and Italy for the first time
threatened sanctions to enforce the UN arms embargo, which has been in place
for nine years with repeated violations.
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