Showdown looms in Lybia as eastern commander eyes Tripoli

A poster of the Libyan military commander Khalifa Haftar on a building in Benghazi. [File, Reuters]

Forces from eastern Libya who have swept through the south and taken control of remaining oilfields in recent weeks have now reinforced a base in the center of the country and signaled to the capital Tripoli that it may be next.

The United Nations, stunned by the southern advance, is scrambling to mediate between eastern commander Khalifa Haftar and Tripoli’s internationally-recognized government led by Prime Minister Fayez al-Serraj, Western diplomats say.