The crisis in Sudan could lead to increase the flow of migrants crossing into Libya’s borders as people attempt to flee the violence, warned Major General Rafi Al-Barghathi, head of Directorate for Combatting Illegal Migration (DCIM) in eastern Libya. Speaking to Russian news agency Sputnik, Al-Barghathi revealed that hundreds of Sudanese have arrived at the Libyan border with Sudan (southern Libya), individually. He expects more to come if the crisis continues. He pointed out that the continuation of the situation in Sudan entails many risks, especially with regard to displacement and migration towards neighboring countries, stressing that the Libyan armed forces control the borders with Sudan so far, which makes the situation “under control” to this day.

EventAir traffic controllers in Tripoli have threatened to strike from May 1 if demands relating to pay and the structure of the air traffic controllers department are not met. The status of the strike action as of April 30 is unclear. Disruptions to flight schedules, including at Mitiga International Airport (MJI), are likely if the action proceeds. AdviceReconfirm all flights if planning to travel to, from or within Libya on May 1.

Sea Watch International, a non-governmental organization, denounced on Saturday Italian authorities’ order to return 30 migrants to Libya, after they were rescued by a merchant ship. “This is a violation of the non-refoulement principle,” Sea Watch said. “In October 2021, the captain of the merchant ship Asso28 was sentenced to one year in prison in Italy for handing over refugees to the Libyan coast guard,” the NGO recalled. NGOs such as Doctors Without Borders (MSF) have asked to facilitate the evacuations of the migrant population in Libya, estimated at some 600,000 people, and have urged the European Union and the United Nations to “urgently review —and, if necessary, suspend— the current cooperation agreements with the Libyan authorities”. According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), last year a total of 24,684 people were rescued or intercepted and returned to the North African country despite being considered an “unsafe” place, 529 people lost their lives and another 848 disappeared.

ISTANBUL: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan dives Sunday into the final two-week stretch before a momentous election that has turned into a referendum on his two decades of divisive but transformative rule. But some of Erdogan’s more hawkish ministers are sounding warnings about Washington leading Western efforts to undermine Turkey’s might through the polls. The 74-year-old former civil servant pledges to restore economic order and bring in vast sums from Western investors who fled the chaos of Erdogan’s more recent rule. “Power will change hands the way it did in 2002,” he said of the year Erdogan’s party first won. Erdogan’s own supporters turned against him when the Turkish leader tried to annul the opposition’s victory in the 2019 mayoral elections in Istanbul.

Violent militia clashes erupted over the Eid holidays in Zawia leading to at least four deaths and over a hundred evacuated. The clashes were revenge attacks over the killing of a member of one of the two militias by a member of the other. An initial ceasefire on 24 April was negotiated by the local 103 Battalion, commanded by Othman Al-Lahab. He said the government was ignoring what is happening in the fourth largest Libyan city – only 40 kilometres away from its PM’s office. The continuing militia clashes in Zawia – just 49 km and less than an hour’s drive west of Tripoli – is indicative of the limited power of the Tripoli based Libyan government of Abd Alhamid Aldabaiba.

The High Council of State has denied holding a meeting between its President, Khaled Al-Mishri, and the President of the House of Representatives, Aguila Saleh. The council stated that Al-Mishri’s efforts are focused on “implementing the electoral path and ensuring its success, and overcoming all difficulties for the 6+6 committee responsible for consensus and proposing electoral laws.”This came in a statement issued by the HSC media office on Saturday, hours after news of Al-Mishri and Saleh’s arrival in the Egyptian capital, Cairo.

French diplomats are preparing for a Libyan security meeting that will bring together security leaders from both the east and west of the country, according to the French website Africa Intelligence. The proposed joint force is still under discussion, and its aim is to withdraw foreign forces and combat smuggling across the country’s southern borders. The United Nations is also involved in the creation of the joint force, and UN envoy Abdoulaye Bathiy will be attending the summit in Paris. The chiefs of staff, General Mohammed Al-Haddad, and General Abdul Raziq Al-Nadouri, along with members of the 5+5 Joint Military Committee. The joint force will first be deployed in the southwestern region, where armed groups and smuggling are prevalent.

Tunisia’s coast guard says that under two weeks it has recovered around 210 bodies of migrants that have washed up on the North African country’s central coastline amid an ongoing increase in migration from Tunisia

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is seen on a TV screen as he attends a videoconference ceremony with Russian President Vladimir Putin to mark the nuclear fuel loading at the Turkey's Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant (NPP), which is under construction in the Turkey's town of Buyukeceli, in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, April 27, 2023.

ADVERTISING“Fewer than 5,000 individuals have chosen to communicate with us,” Patel said during a Friday briefing. People have been evacuated by airlifts from Wadi Saeedna airfield in Khartoum and 15-hour-long overland convoys from Khartoum to Port Sudan for transfer to a ferry to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. In addition, several hundred U.S. citizens have already left Sudan either by land, sea or aircraft, Patel added. The U.S., which has for years advised citizens to avoid Sudan, has rebuffed calls for a broader government-organized evacuation there. The Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces are battling for control amid intermittent cease-fire violations.

In order to have a better understanding of the recent developments in Sudan, it is necessary to look at the region’s existing parties and dynamics. Recent developments in SudanThe current upheavals in Sudan indicate that the raging political conflict continues to accelerate in the region. On April 14, 2023, the Sudanese army raided the Rapid Intervention Forces headquarters. The prevailing view is that Hemedti’s units rather than being complementary to the Sudanese army are, in fact, a separate military structure. The conflict in Sudan could further aggravate the political crisis and potentially destabilize the country.

Member of the Libyan House of Representatives Talal Al-Mihoub has warned of the potential significant impact on Libya due to the ongoing conflict in Sudan. Speaking to the press, Al-Mihoub stated that the situation in Sudan could have serious repercussions for Libya, and that the country must take measures to protect its borders. In response to the situation, the Libyan parliament has announced that it will present a report in its next session to discuss the situation in Sudan and what measures should be taken to protect the border. The parliament is closely monitoring the situation in Sudan and is working with relevant agencies to stay up-to-date on developments, Al-Mihoub said. Al-Mihoub expressed hope that the bloodshed in Sudan would come to an end soon, and that Libya would stand ready to protect its borders if necessary.

In Libya, arable land in general is at a premium. Still, more than 5,000 hectares are used for strawberry cultivation in western Libya. Agricultural engineer Hatem Saad al-Magri, who specializes in growing strawberries and seasonal crops, has stated that strawberries are crops with a good economic return. This return can be increased by working on producing the crop at the right time for export, which starts from November to April. He stressed the need to take care of producing fruits with desirable horticultural specifications that are free from biological and chemical pollution.

Khalifa Ramadan, founder of the Friends of the Tree association, at his farm in Tajoura, in the eastern suburbs of Tripoli, on March 18, 2023. MAHMUD TURKIA / AFPSitting in the shade of young eucalyptus and laurels, Khalifa Ramadan prepares with agronomist friends a volunteer mission to preserve the forest cover of western Libya, threatened with extinction by years of drought, deforestation and galloping urbanization. Despite low rainfall and an absence of permanent waterways, Libya is characterized by diverse natural vegetation. Drought, another serious threat“With the help of other security services, we have put an end to these criminal acts. For Khalifa Ramadan, if the protection of the vegetation cover by controls is essential, the awareness of the general public is even more so.

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