Libya Coup General: World Must Back Our ‘War on Terror’

Urges Constitutional Council to Establish 'Crisis Govt'

Libyan General Khalifa Hifter’s rhetoric is shifting to more closely mirror that of the US Embassy today, insisting his move is targeting “terrorists” and not just general Islamists.

Gen. Hifter, whose self-proclaimed National Army seized parliament on Sunday, urged the international community to endorse and take part in his “war on terror,” saying parliament had turned Libya into a “state sponsor of terrorism.”

He called on the nation’s Constitutional Council to move to establish a “crisis government” that would empower him to continue operations against the Islamists, saying his military was a “safety valve” against the corrupt parliament.

Hifter also insisted the operation would continue for the foreseeable future, insisting his army would reamin on the offensive nationwide until they “rid the country of all terrorists.”

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.