Left to right: Libyan Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj, French President Emmanuel Macron, and Marshal Khalifa Haftar near Paris, July 2017.
Philippe Wojazer / Reuters
On July 25, at peace talks in Paris convened by French President Emmanuel Macron, the leaders of Libya’s two main factions—Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj of the internationally recognized Government of National Accord (GNA) in Tripoli and Marshal Khalifa Haftar of the self-styled Libyan National Army, based near the eastern city of Benghazi—verbally agreed to a cease-fire and national elections, to be held “as soon as possible.” The deal has generated positive headlines and served as an early diplomatic achievement for the young French president. But by including Haftar in the talks—despite UN, EU, and NATO backing of
Source URL: https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/france/2017-09-21/how-france-making-libya-worse