U.S. officials say Trump backed Haftar's attack on Tripoli

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U.S. President Donald Trump indicated that Washington supported Libyan strongman Khalifa Haftar's assault on the country's capital Tripoli during a phone conversation between them last week, Bloomberg reported on Wednesday, citing American officials familiar with the matter.

Prior to Trump's call, White House National Security Advisor John Bolton also spoke with Haftar over the phone, leaving him with the impression of a U.S. green light for the offensive by his Libyan National Army, according to three diplomats.

Last Friday, the White House issued a statement on the April 15 call between Trump and Haftar, addressing the Libyan strongman as "field marshal." The new revelation suggested that the U.S. president had tacitly recognized Haftar as a Libyan leader, the report said.

Trump discussed "ongoing counterterrorism efforts" and "recognized Field Marshal Haftar's significant role in fighting terrorism and securing Libya's oil resources," according to the White House statement.

Libyan protesters attend a demonstration to demand an end to the Khalifa Haftar's offensive against Tripoli, in Martyrs' Square in central Tripoli, Libya, April 19, 2019. /Reuters Photo

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Commenting on the Bloomberg story, a White House spokesman who declined to be identified said on Wednesday that the characterization of the phone calls between Haftar and Trump and Bolton was inaccurate.

If confirmed, the Trump administration's backing of Haftar's attack represented a "dramatic turn" from what U.S. Secretary of State Michael Pompeo had said days earlier.

In an April 7 statement, Pompeo said: "We have made clear that we oppose the military offensive by Khalifa Haftar's forces and urge the immediate halt to these military operations against the Libyan capital."

Meanwhile, Libyan Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj, head of the internationally recognized government in Tripoli, accused France of supporting Haftar whom he described as a "dictator."

Libyan Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj arrives at the checkpoint Gate 27, after retaking it from Haftar forces, in west of Tripoli, Libya, April 05, 2019. /Reuters Photo

"We are surprised that France does not support our government that is democratic, but supports a dictator," Sarraj told the Liberation and Le Monde newspapers in France on Wednesday.

"When (French president) Emmanuel Macron called me, I warned him that public opinion was against France. We don't want Libyans to hate France. France still has a positive and important role to play," he said.

France has denied the accusations of supporting Haftar, saying it has contact with all the actors in war-ravaged Libya where a complex mosaic of militias and political factions are competing for advantage.

(With input from AFP)

(Cover: A Libyan woman carries pictures of Khalifa Haftar during a demonstration to support Libyan National Army offensive against Tripoli, in Benghazi, Libya, April 12, 2019. /Reuters Photo)

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