(by Massimiliano D'Elia) The symbol of Libya's opening towards the outside has been attacked. The headquarters of the foreign ministry has suffered an attack which, as the hours pass, takes on an increasingly symbolic meaning. Libya, still divided and in conflict after the dismissal and killing of Gaddafi, is looking for the road to stabilization through the UN road map, sanctioned at the Palermo summit. Another evolution of Western political strategy is to include as much as possible all the actors of the North African country.
A process that could have its first fruits already after the elections to be held by June 2019. A stabilization that not everyone wants, given the lavish profits from human trafficking and oil smuggling. The small militias, scattered throughout the country, live thanks to these illicit traffics. Many militias close to the so-called Islamic State.
The suicide attackers then hit the Libyan foreign ministry in Tripoli on Christmas day, opening fire before blowing themselves up inside the building.
A ministry employee told Reuters that three people were killed and six injured. The health ministry has confirmed one dead and nine wounded.
The three bombers are suspected of being militants of the Islamic State. One was killed by ministry guards and the other two blew themselves up, the source said. Heavy smoke rose from the building which was then surrounded by security forces as the wounded were taken to hospital.
Foreign Minister Mohamed Taher Siala never risked his life during the attack.
The Western powers and the UN are working, as mentioned, for the North African country to hold elections next year after the January national conference.
Gaddafi was overthrown and killed in the 2011 uprising and Saif, his son, who was detained after 2011 and then released, was seen by some as his father's potential reformist successor in the years leading up to 2011 and remains at all. now, a key figure for Gaddafi's loyalists.
“In this regard, we all support, indeed we believe that no one should be isolated or excluded from a constructive political role,” said Russian politician Bogdanov.
"That is why we are maintaining contact with all groups based in the west, east and south of the country ... Saif al-Islam has the support of important tribes in specific areas of Libya and this should be enough to include him too. in the political stabilization process of Libya ”.
Russia is also in close contact with Cyrenaica strongman General Khalifa Haftar who dominates eastern Libya and who has visited Moscow and held talks with senior Kremlin officials.
Even Italy, following the Palermo summit, has definitively made it clear that it has taken over the Libyan dossier; this, also thanks to the support of Trump and Putin. After the embassy in Tripoli, Italy also opened the Consulate in Benghazi, doubling its presence on the territory. A massive delivery of basic necessities and medicines has begun to all districts of the country. Italy then reversed the course (Prime Minister Conte was on a secret and lightning visit to Libya the day before Christmas) and began to dialogue with all the actors in the field starting from General Kalifa Haftar who as known, with a military force of about 40 thousand loyalists controls large portions of territory in Cyrenaica and Fezzan, places where ENI has its largest oil extraction points and from where it is possible to manage and stem the phenomenon of migratory flows.
As far as the emergency of migratory flows is concerned, Italy has donated 14 patrol boats to the Libyan Coast Guard, at the same time training the staff at the navy school at La Maddalena in Sardinia, through the EU-plate mission Eunavfor Med - Op. Sophia.
Yesterday, however, ENAV announced that it had won a 2 million euro contract with the Libyan civil aviation authority for the modernization of the equipment in the control tower of the Tripoli international airport.
Under the contract, ENAV will provide and distribute three new workstations for air traffic controllers.
"The contract covers the supply and installation of three new workstations for air traffic controllers, the integration and implementation of ground-to-air and ground-to-ground communication systems, as well as the data infrastructure and wireless networks ".
The contract, which provides an option for the provision and installation of meteorological technology components for additional 900.000 euro, should be completed by the end of 2019.
ENAV is also helping to build the new control tower and the technical building at Mitiga International Airport, which is the only operating airport in Tripoli.