ISLAMABAD – Forces loyal to Libyan military strongman Khalifa Haftar saythey have killed 16 Turkish soldiers in recent weeks amid ongoing violencein the North African country.
A spokesman for Haftar’s self-styled Libya National Army (LNA) said Sundaythe Turkish soldiers were killed in the battle for Tripoli in the port cityof Misrata, as well as the town of al-Falah south of the capital.
The announcement came a day after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoganacknowledged some Turkish losses in Libya’s “struggle”.
“We are there (in Libya) with our (Turkish) soldiers and our teams from theSyrian National Army. We continue the struggle there. We have severalmartyrs. In return, however, we neutralized nearly a hundred (of Haftar’s)legionaries,” Erdogan said.
On Friday, Erdogan confirmed for the first time the presence of pro-TurkishSyrian militants in Libya.
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“Turkey is there with a training force. There are also people from theSyrian National Army,” he told reporters in Istanbul, referring to a groupof anti-Damascus militants previously known as the so-called Free SyrianArmy.
Libya’s internationally recognized government, led by Prime Minister Fayezal-Sarraj, has previously sought Turkey’s support against militants underthe command of Khalifa Haftar, who receive support from Egypt, SaudiArabia, and the United Arab Emirates.
Haftar’s rebels launched an offensive in April to wrest control of Triploi.
