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12:53 Monday 10 July 2017

The government has missed a deadline to respond to critical recommendations that it resolves compensation for Libya-IRA victims by the end of this year.

The Northern Ireland Affairs Committee (NIAC) published a report in May which found successive UK governments had failed to support victims of Libyan-IRA terrorism, while French, American and German governments had successfully pressed Libya to pay compensation.

The committee called on the government to secure compensation by the end of this year.

The late Libyan dictator Col Gaddafi provided millions of pounds and 120 tonnes of weaponry to the IRA, including Semtex.

The government was due to respond to the NIAC report by Friday last week, July 7, but failed to do so.

Lawyer Matt Jury, who helped lead the Omagh bomb civil action and is acting for Libya-IRA victims, said the delay was unacceptable.

Does the government not realise that every time it fails to live up to an expectation, obligation or assurance it is unnecessarily adding to the victims pain and suffering? he said.

The victims have waited too long for this issue to be resolved and delays like this, without explanation, are simply inexcusable.

The inquirys recommendations were clear, as was its position that this matter should be resolved by the end of the year. The inquiry called for action, not procrastination, and the clock is ticking.

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office missed its July 7 deadline despite assurances made to the victims lawyers that the deadline would be met, he said.

Victims only learnt of the plan not to respond in time through an answer to a parliamentary question last week, he added.

In an email to some campaigners on the day of the deadline, the FCO said the delay was because government was in purdah for much of the time between May 2 and June 30 due to the election and ministers had only limited time to consider the committees report in detail. It said a response would be given in September.

The government has persistently opposed moves by UUP peer Lord Empey to tap 9.5bn of terror-linked Libyan assets frozen in the UK to compensate victims.

Excerpt from:
Government misses deadline on Libya-IRA report - Belfast Newsletter

The policy, if approved, would aim to further the existing US goal of supporting reconciliation between rival factions in eastern and western areas of Libya. The policy could also lead to the eventual re-opening of the US embassy and the establishing of a new intelligence sharing effort led by US special forces, according to the officials.

If approved, this would be the latest country in which President Donald Trump is expanding the US counterterrorism effort.

The new approach could lead to more regular visits to Libya by diplomatic personnel, including the US ambassador, who has not been stationed in the country because of the unstable situation.

The US is also considering re-establishing a presence in Benghazi after a 2012 attack that killed four Americans -- and also re-establishing a coordination center for some US forces and Libyan officials to facilitate counterterrorist intelligence sharing. US troops could also carry out a training and advisory role in conjunction with Libyan forces.

It's also expected that if approved, up to 50 US special operations troops could be sent to Libya on a rotating basis to share counterintelligence information.

Officials caution all of this could take months to implement and intelligence sharing and training efforts in Somalia are seen as the model for the new policy.

Small teams of US military and intelligence personnel have gone in and out of Libya in recent years for just a few days at a time to meet and share information with Libyan counterparts.

But it is significant that a more permanent US presence is being considered for the first time since the US closed its embassy in Tripoli in 2014 after the situation deteriorated following the 2012 attack at the US compound in Benghazi that killed Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other Americans.

On a practical level, these new strategy goals will be difficult to achieve, the official acknowledged.

The critical challenge continues to be forming a broad national government that would be accepted by both the internationally accepted Government of National Accord led by Prime Minister al Sarraj which controls much of the west of Libya and the Libyan National Army headed by Kalifa Haftar which dominates the east. The official said that the new policy calls for closer cooperation and intelligence sharing with Haftar.

While the intelligence sharing would largely focus on counterterrorism, the US is likely to provide assistance to Libya to address the migration crisis in the country.

The rest is here:
US military considers ramping up Libya presence - CNN International

The Libya Observer

Central and southern regions of Libya go offline The Libya Observer Telecommunication services for central and southern Libyan cities have been cut off, state-owned Libya Telephone Company reported on Monday. On its official Facebook page, the company said a major fiber optic cable for telephone and internet ...

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Central and southern regions of Libya go offline - The Libya Observer

Benghazi - The decomposed bodies of 19 Egyptian migrants were found in the Libyan desert overnight after the truck in which they were smuggled into the country overturned, the Red Crescent said Sunday.

The bodies were buried in a cemetery near the Libyan border town of Tobruk, the organisation said.

It was unclear when the Egyptians died but their bodies were in a state of decomposition when found in a desert area near Tobruk in Libya's remote east.

Meanwhile a security official in Tobruk said a search was underway for a group of 29 other Egyptians reported missing by authorities in their country.

Since the 2011 overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi, Libya has been riven by chaos, making it the main gateway for African migrants heading for Europe on dangerous Mediterranean crossings.

Human traffickers have exploited the instability to boost their lucrative but deadly trade.

Egyptians have travelled to Libya for decades, to look for jobs in the oil-rich North African country or to use it as a transit route to Europe.

Since January 100 000 migrants have made the perilous sea journey to Europe, around 85 000 of them arriving in Italy from Libya, according to the International Organiaation for Migration.

The United Nations says more than 2 200 migrants have died this year attempting to make the crossing.

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19 bodies of Egyptian migrants found in Libya desert - News24

SITUATION UPDATE

June continues to see a large number of rescue missions as favorable sea and weather conditions contributed to an increase in migrant boats off Libya. A total of 2,483 migrants were rescued in Libyan waters in June, the majority off Azzawya. Clashes between the Libyan Coast Guard and migrant smugglers were reported on the 11 June, which led to the death of one migrant and the injury of two others. During the reporting period, the remains of 107 men, women and children were discovered along the Libyan coastline.

112 migrants were reportedly found in a truck in Garaboli after being held by smugglers. They were transferred to detention centres. In addition, six migrants (2 from Cameroon and 4 from Nigeria) were reported kidnapped and assaulted between Sabha and Ashshwayrif. One of the migrants reportedly died as a result, the remaining were found in poor health in Bani Waleed.

A peace agreement was signed on 19 June between the mayor of Misratah and the Tawergha Local Council. The agreement would enable the return of Tawergha IDPs, the majority of whom had been displaced in 2011, safely to their homes. According to DTM Data, 42% of those displaced between 2011 and 2014 were Tawergha IDPs from Misratah. As of the time of publication, no IDPs had been reported to have yet returned. (DTM Displacement Tracker)

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IOM Libya monthly update - June 2017 - ReliefWeb