US court issues arrest warrant for Libyan war lord Khalifa Haftar

An arrest warrant for Libya’s renegade general Khalifa Hafter has been issued by a Virginia court in America. Picture: Reuters/Sergei Kapukhin

An arrest warrant for Libya’s renegade general Khalifa Hafter has been issued by a Virginia court in America. Picture: Reuters/Sergei Kapukhin

Published Nov 18, 2019

Share

Johannesburg – An arrest warrant for Libya’s renegade general Khalifa Haftar, the leader of the self-styled Libyan National Army (LNA), has been issued by a Virginia court in America on the basis that the general, who has the dual US and Libyan nationality, bears responsibility for the indiscriminate shelling of civilians in the Libyan capital Tripoli.

The lawsuit against Haftar and his LNA forces, which invaded Tripoli in early April in an attempt to overthrow the internationally-recognised Government of National Accord (GNA), was filed by four families related to those killed, estimated to be over 1 000 people, last July.

The Virginia court said that if Haftar didn't answer to his arrest warrant, he would be sentenced in absentia, the Libya Observer reported.

US Congressmen have also called earlier for prosecuting Haftar for war crimes he committed in Libya since 2014, citing that he is a US citizen and should be tried in the US.

The ongoing fighting between LNA forces and GNA government troops has reached a stalemate with neither side gaining ground as civilians continue to pay the price and infrastructure is destroyed.

Various regional and international countries have also been involved in supporting different sides of the conflict with military, economic and other aid.

African News Agency (ANA)

Related Topics: