In January 2020,

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

militarily intervened in support of the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

-recognized

Government of National Accord The Government of National Accord (GNA; ) was an interim government for Libya that was formed under the terms of the Libyan Political Agreement, a United Nations–led initiative, signed on 17 December 2015. The agreement was unanimously endors ...

(GNA) of

Libya Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...

in the 2014–2020 Libyan civil war. Military intervention was approved by the

Grand National Assembly of Turkey The Grand National Assembly of Turkey ( ), usually referred to simply as the GNAT or TBMM, also referred to as , in Turkish, is the Unicameralism, unicameral Turkey, Turkish legislature. It is the sole body given the legislative prerogatives by ...

on 2 January 2020, which passed a one-year mandate to deploy troops to Libya. Turkish military deployments to Libya began on 5 January. Direct Turkish support for the Government of National Accord usually involves on-the-ground advisers providing training and operational support, air support through

unmanned aerial vehicle An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) or unmanned aircraft system (UAS), commonly known as a drone, is an aircraft with no human pilot, crew, or passengers onboard, but rather is controlled remotely or is autonomous.De Gruyter Handbook of Dron ...

s (UAVs), intelligence operatives and support from

Turkish Navy The Turkish Naval Forces (), or Turkish Navy (), is the naval warfare service branch of the TAF. The modern naval traditions and customs of the Turkish Navy can be traced back to 10 July 1920, when it was established as the ''Directorate o ...

vessels for Libyan ground forces. In addition to its own troop and equipment deployments, Turkey was hiring and transporting

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

n mercenaries from the Turkish-backed

Syrian National Army The Syrian National Army (SNA; ), also known as the Turkish-backed Free Syrian Army (TFSA), is a coalition of armed Syrian opposition groups that participate in the Syrian civil war. Comprising various rebel factions that emerged at the sta ...

to support and bolster the manpower of the GNA since December 2019. The Turkish military intervention in Libya is mainly interpreted as an attempt to secure access to resources and maritime boundaries in the

Eastern Mediterranean The Eastern Mediterranean is a loosely delimited region comprising the easternmost portion of the Mediterranean Sea, and well as the adjoining land—often defined as the countries around the Levantine Sea. It includes the southern half of Turkey ...

as part of its Blue Homeland Doctrine ( Turkish: ''Mavi Vatan''), especially following the ratification of the Libya–Turkey maritime deal. Secondary Turkish objectives are believed to include countering

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

ian and Emirati influence in the

Middle East and North Africa The Middle East and North Africa (MENA), also referred to as West Asia and North Africa (WANA) or South West Asia and North Africa (SWANA), is a geographic region which comprises the Middle East (also called West Asia) and North Africa together ...

. Turkish involvement has also led to disputes with Greece, Israel, and Cyprus. In December 2023, the Turkish parliament approved the extension of the deployment of the Turkish forces in Libya for two more years starting from 2 January 2024. On 6 August 2024, Khalifa Haftar's son and LAAF commander Saddam Haftar announced the launch of an operation to "secure the country's southern borders and strengthen stability in these strategic areas". Subsequently, the United Nations called for restraint after Libya's Tripoli-based government placed its forces on high alert in the southern desert region in anticipation of an attack by fighters loyal to the eastern military leader Khalifa Haftar.

Intervention

Following the approval of the one-year mandate to send troops to Libya, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan stated that Turkish forces had begun to be deployed in the country on 5 January. According to

Al-Arabiya Arabiya (, transliterated: '; meaning "The Arabic One" or "The Arab One") is a Saudi state-owned international Arabic news television channel. It is based in Riyadh and is a subsidiary of MBC Group. The channel is a flagship of the media c ...

, MİT intelligence operatives were the first Turkish assets to arrive in Libya. The LNA claimed to have bombed a Turkish cargo vessel which had been carrying supplies for Turkish-backed forces on 19 February during rocket strikes on the Port of Tripoli, although the Turkish government denied there having been any Turkish cargo ships at the port. On 25 February, President Erdoğan confirmed two Turkish soldiers had been killed in Libya. He also stated that 100 pro-LNA fighters had been killed in retaliation. Published photos, including photos from the Turkish Defense Ministry, revealed that Turkey have transferred to Libya

M60 tank The M60 is an American second-generation main battle tank (MBT). It was officially standardized as the Tank, Combat, Full Tracked: 105-mm Gun, M60 in March 1959. Although developed from the M48 Patton, the M60 tank series was never officially ...

T-155 Fırtına T-155 Fırtına ( Turkish for ''Storm'') is a Turkish variant of K9 Thunder 155 mm self-propelled howitzer originally developed by South Korea. It is manufactured and assembled by Turkish Land Forces at the 1010th Army Equipment Repair Factory us ...

self-propelled artillery, and

T-122 Sakarya The T-122 Sakarya is a Turkish Multiple rocket launcher, multiple launch rocket system developed by ROKETSAN. Overview As part of the Turkish Army#Modernization, modernization drive undertaken by the Turkish Military in the 1980s and 90s se ...

multiple rocket launchers.

Operation Peace Storm

GNA Prime Minister Sarraj announced Operation Peace Storm on 25 March, with Turkish drones and intelligence providing significant backing to the operation. On 1 April, a

frigate A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied. The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and maneuvera ...

fired a surface-to-air missile at a LNA drone which had got close to it, which landed in Ajaylat. With the support of Turkish drones, GNA forces seized recaptured the coastal towns of Sorman,

Sabratha Sabratha (; also ''Sabratah'', ''Siburata''), in the Zawiya DistrictAjaylat, Aljmail, Regdalin, Zaltan, and Al Assah on 13 April and successfully re-connected GNA-controlled territory with the Tunisian border. Turkish strikes reportedly caused heavy casualties for forces in the area and destroyed military vehicles that had been provided to pro-Haftar forces by the

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a Federal monarchy, federal elective monarchy made up of Emirates of the United Arab E ...

. In May 2020, Turkish drones reportedly destroyed three Pantsir missile systems alongside six others which were destroyed by GNA aircraft and drones. By 6 June, the GNA had successfully ousted Haftar's forces from the entirety of

Tripoli Tripoli or Tripolis (from , meaning "three cities") may refer to: Places Greece *Tripolis (region of Arcadia), a district in ancient Arcadia, Greece * Tripolis (Larisaia), an ancient Greek city in the Pelasgiotis district, Thessaly, near Larissa ...

and captured the LNA stronghold of Tarhouna with Turkey's support, considered a significant factor in turning the offensive in the GNA's favour. However, by the end of June, Egypt (the backer of Haftar) warned Turkey and the GNA of military intervention as the GNA attacked Sirte. The GNA government denounced the warning, and called it a declaration of war.

Central Libya clashes

On 4 July, unidentified non-Libyan warplanes targeted

Al-Watiya Air Base Al-Watiya Air Base also known as Okba Ibn Nafa Air Base is a military airport in the Nuqat al Khams district of western Libya. It was named after Uqba ibn Nafi, the Islamic general who conquered North Africa in the 7th century. It is east of th ...

. The airstrikes destroyed GNA military equipment brought by Turkey, including three

MIM-23 Hawk The Raytheon MIM-23 HAWK ("Homing All the Way Killer") is an American medium-range surface-to-air missile. It was designed to be a much more mobile counterpart to the MIM-14 Nike Hercules, trading off range and altitude capability for a much sm ...

air defense systems stationed in the base. The Defense Ministry of Turkey acknowledged that the strikes damaged some of their defense systems. Turkish officials said that no-one was killed in the attack and vowed retribution, indicating the attack could have been perpetrated by Emirati

Dassault Mirage 2000 The Dassault Mirage 2000 is a French multirole, single-engine, delta wing, fourth-generation jet fighter manufactured by Dassault Aviation. It was designed in the late 1970s as a lightweight fighter to replace the Mirage III for the French Air ...

aircraft. On 21 August, the GNA and the LNA both declared a ceasefire.

Involvement of SADAT and Turkey's backed foreign mercenaries

In May 2013, was the first time Libya is mentioned in SADAT's website. It was on Libya "''to determine the needs of New Libyan Armed Forces and search for possibilities for Consultancy, Training, Ordnance service delivery for Libya''" and the Turkish government was fully aware of it. After the negotiations a project of "Sports Facilities design for a Military Regiment" was prepared. The Turkish government first began sending mercenaries hired from the

(SNA) in December 2019, initially sending 300 fighters. As of September 2020, 18,000 Syrian fighters have been sent to Libya, including 350 underage children, and 471 have been killed (34 of whom are alleged to be children). According to some sources, the demographic composition of the fighters are mostly

Syrian Turkmen Syrian Turkmen, also called Syrian Turks or Syrian Turkish people (; ) are Syrian citizens of Turkish origin who mainly trace their roots to Anatolia (i.e. modern Turkey). Turkish-speaking Syrian Turkmen make up the third largest ethnic group ...

, although the SNA is mostly Arab. The SOHR claimed that least 50 Syrian fighters were identified as former fighters of the

Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant The Islamic State (IS), also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and Daesh, is a transnational Salafi jihadist organization and unrecognized quasi-state. IS occupied signi ...

(ISIL), that Turkish intelligence also transferred more than 2,500 Tunisian

ISIL foreign fighters Foreign fighters have fought on all four sides of the Syrian Civil War, as well both sides of the Iraqi Civil War (2014–2017), War in Iraq. In addition to Sunni Islam, Sunni foreign fighters, Shia Islam, Shia fighters from several countries ...

to Libya to fight alongside the Turkish-backed militias of the Tripoli-based Government of National Accord (GNA), from nearly 10,000 jihadist fighters The

US State Department The United States Department of State (DOS), or simply the State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs o ...

rejected the allegations, stating: "''Despite widespread reports of the fighters' extremist links, the U.S. military found no evidence to suggest the mercenaries were affiliated with the Islamic State extremist group or al-Qaida. It says they were "very likely" motivated by generous financial packages rather than ideology or politics.''" The US report covered only the first quarter of the 2020 (until the end of March). On 12 April 2020, the LNA claimed to have captured a Turkish-hired mercenary affiliated with the Peshmerga Roj but the

Kurdistan Democratic Party The Kurdistan Democratic Party (), usually abbreviated as KDP or PDK, is the ruling Political party, party in Iraqi Kurdistan and the senior partner in the Kurdistan Regional Government. It was founded in 1946 in Mahabad in Iranian Kurdistan. ...

denied the fighter was affiliated with the group. In July 2020, Al Arabiyah reported that Turkey sent Syrian, Tunisian, Egyptian, and Sudanese mercenaries into Libya with planes. In 2020, Turkey suspended its support to the Syrian militant group Al-Rahman Legion, because the group refused to obey Turkey's order to send fighters into Libya. Few militants of the group went to fight in Libya, despite the rejection of their commanders. In 2020, the

United States Department of Defense The United States Department of Defense (DoD, USDOD, or DOD) is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government charged with coordinating and superv ...

accused SADAT (a private Turkish security contractor company with close relationship with the Turkish state) of training Syrians who were sent to support pro-Turkish forces in Libya. In addition, a US Defense Department report claimed that aside from Turkish troops, Turkey also sent thousands of Syrian mercenaries who were previously used by Turkey in the Syrian civil war. In March 2021, the UN released a report which proved the use of Syrian mercenaries and multiple violations from Turkey. It also mention that SADAT, violated the UN resolution in Libya. In May 2021, the Libyan Foreign Minister Najla Mangoush in a press conference alongside the Turkish Foreign Minister, Mevlut Cavusoglu, called Turkey to comply with the UN resolutions and withdraw the Turkish troops and mercenaries. The Turkish Foreign Minister responded that the military forces were present under a training agreement reached with the previous government. In July 2021, the United States added Turkey to the list of countries that are implicated in the use of

child soldiers Children in the military, including state armed forces, non-state armed groups, and other military organizations, may be trained for combat, assigned to support roles, such as cooks, porters/couriers, or messengers, or used for tactical adv ...

, because it used them in Syria and Libya. The ''2023 Trafficking in Persons Report'' mentioned that factions of the Turkish backed Syrian National Army recruited and used Syrian children as child soldiers in Libya.

Incidents with Operation Irini and arms trafficking

In 2018, the UN condemned Turkish shipments of arms to Libya which violated the arms embargo and called them "extremely disconcerting". Turkish Foreign Minister rejected the accusations. In 2019, shipments of Turkish arms was captured in Libya's port. Furthermore, the cargo ship ''Amazon Giurgiulesti'' under the flag of

Moldova Moldova, officially the Republic of Moldova, is a Landlocked country, landlocked country in Eastern Europe, with an area of and population of 2.42 million. Moldova is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. ...

transferred arms from Turkey to Libya (from the port of

Samsun Samsun is a List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, city on the north coast of Turkey and a major Black Sea port. The urban area recorded a population of 738,692 in 2022. The city is the capital of Samsun Province which has a population of ...

in Turkey to the port of Tripoli in Libya) in violation of UN sanctions. After the incident revealed, the Moldovan authorities suspended the flag registration of the ship. Although Moldovan-flagged, the ship is owned by the Turkish company Maya RoRo SA and operated by the Akdeniz Roro Deniz Tasimaciligi Turizm Sanayi ve Ticaret Limited Sti. In addition, a UN report claimed that Jordan, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates were the main powers who constantly violated the arms embargo. In 2020, Turkey has prevented warships from Germany, France and Greece which participated in the EU

Operation Irini The European Union Naval Force Mediterranean Operation Irini (EUNAVFOR MED IRINI) was launched on 31 March 2020 with the primary mission to enforce the United Nations arms embargo on Libya due to the Second Libyan Civil War. Operation Irini is a ...

and the NATO

Operation Sea Guardian Operation Sea Guardian was launched as a maritime security operation by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) during the Warsaw Summit in July 2016, aiming to expand NATO's role within the Mediterranean Sea. Operation Sea Guardian took ...

to inspect Turkish vessels which were suspected of carrying illegal arms to Libya. One of the vessels (''Çirkin'') later found to have violated the UN arms embargo and the maritime company was sanctioned by the EU. In addition, the captain of the Lebanese-flagged cargo ship ''Bana'' was arrested in Italy. The vessel was accused of transferring arms and Turkish military personnel from Turkey to Libya in violation of the United Nations arms embargo, with the escort of the Turkish navy frigates. Moreover, French fighter jets from the

French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle ''Charles de Gaulle'' is the flagship of the French Navy. The ship, commissioned in 2001, is the tenth French aircraft carrier, the first French nuclear-powered surface vessel, and the only nuclear-powered carrier completed outside of the United ...

spotted the delivery at Libya, while on a reconnaissance mission. In 2020, a joint investigation of

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

Bellingcat Bellingcat (stylised bell¿ngcat) is a Netherlands-based investigative journalism group that specialises in fact-checking and open-source intelligence (OSINT). It was founded by British citizen journalist and former blogger Eliot Higgins in Ju ...

, Lighthouse Reports,

Stern The stern is the back or aft-most part of a ship or boat, technically defined as the area built up over the sternpost, extending upwards from the counter rail to the taffrail. The stern lies opposite the bow, the foremost part of a ship. O ...

, ARD and elDiario.es revealed regular flights of cargo planes, transferring arms and personnel, between Turkish and Libyan airports. In September 2021, a report of the Operation Irini revealed that Turkey refused the inspection of Turkish ships heading to Libya 6 times. In February 2022, the Turkish intelligence captured and abducted from Ukraine the Turkish arm dealer and former special forces captain in the Turkish armed forces, Nuri Bozkir, after he exposed the Turkish arms transfers to militant groups in Syria and Libya. In an interview before his arrest he said that he bought weapons in eastern European countries and shipped them to Turkey. Then the Turkish intelligence sent them to battlefields across the region. In May and October 2022, Turkey refused to accept the inspection of the Turkish flagged vessels ''MSKosovak'' (May 2022) and ''MV Matilde A'' (October 2022) which were heading to Libya. In March 2023, Turkey denied inspection to Turkish flagged MV KOSOVAK requested by Irini. Security Council called upon all UN members to cooperate with inspections.

Conviction of Journalists

In September 2020, five Turkish journalists were jailed in Turkey after revealing documents about the Turkish intelligence activities in Libya. Three of them released in February 2022.

Reactions

Libyan

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...

– the

Tobruk Tobruk ( ; ; ) is a port city on Libya's eastern Mediterranean coast, near the border with Egypt. It is the capital of the Butnan District (formerly Tobruk District) and has a population of 120,000 (2011 est.)."Tobruk" (history), ''Encyclop� ...

government, which as of late 2019 controlled the vast majority of Libyan territory as well as most of Libya's oil fields, opposes the maritime deal signed between Turkey and Tripoli which extends Turkish maritime boundaries from the southwest Turkish coast to the coast of Derna and Tobruk. On 22 December, the Tobruk government's

Libyan National Army The Libyan National Army (LNA; , ''al-jaysh al-waṭaniyy al-Lībii''), also known as the Libyan Arab Army (LAA; , ''al-Jaysh al-'Arabiyy al-Lībii'') or the Libyan Arab Armed Forces (LAAF; ), is a component of Libyan Armed Forces, Libya's mil ...

seized a Turkish vessel that entered waters under its control, but released it the next day. *

Government of National Unity A national unity government, government of national unity (GNU), or national union government is a broad coalition government consisting of all parties (or all major parties) in the legislature, usually formed during a time of war or other nati ...

– In May 2021, the Libyan Foreign Minister Najla Mangoush in a press conference alongside the Turkish Foreign Minister, called Turkey to comply with the UN resolutions and withdraw the Turkish troops and mercenaries. The Turkish Foreign Minister responded that the military forces were present under a training agreement reached with the previous government.

International

Supranational organizations

* – The United Nations reported that Turkey is one of the countries that systematically violated the Libyan arms embargo. In addition, in March 2021, in a new report UN accused some countries including Turkey of extensive and blatant violations. The report included photos, diagrams and maps in order to support the accusations. * – the European Union rejected the deployment of Turkish troops in Libya, and jointly with foreign ministers of Italy, France, Germany and the UK, the EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell called on 7 January for an immediate ceasefire in and around Tripoli. On 21 September 2020, Council of the European Union imposed sanctions on the Turkish maritime company Avrasya Shipping which operates the Çirkin freighter, because the vessel found to have violated the UN arms embargo in Libya in May and June 2020. * – NATO general secretary

Jens Stoltenberg Jens Stoltenberg (; born 16 March 1959) is a Norwegian politician from the Labour Party. Since 2025, he has been the Minister of Finance in the Støre Cabinet. He has previously been the prime minister of Norway and secretary general of NATO. ...

said "that NATO fully supports the work of the United Nations to find a political solution to the crisis and he urged all parties in Libya and members of the international community to support the UN-led process. It was important that all parties respect the UN arms embargo."

Governments

* – The Egyptian government, an ally of the Tobruk government, denounced the Turkish-GNA maritime and military deal, foreign minister Sameh Shoukry blasting it as "illegal" in a joint statement on 5 December with French foreign minister

Jean-Yves Le Drian Jean-Yves Le Drian (; born 30 June 1947) is a French politician who served as Minister of Europe and Foreign Affairs in the governments of Prime Ministers Édouard Philippe and Jean Castex (2017–2022) and as Minister of Defence under Preside ...

. Egypt's parliament approved a bill for the deployment of its army to Libya in the name of national security and fighting terrorists. * – Tunisia rejected the request of Turkey to use its territory for military shipments, but continues to support

(GNA). * – Greece sent two letters of protest to the

over the Libya–Turkey maritime deal, which Greece viewed as infringing on its own sovereignty and endangering regional stability and expelled the Libyan ambassador from Athens after the deal became known. * – The Cypriot government denounced the Libya–Turkey maritime deal, and tried to rally other countries in the region to oppose its maritime borders aspect. * – Saudi Arabia's foreign ministry condemned "the recent Turkish escalation in Libya". The statement added, "The kingdom affirms that this Turkish escalation poses a threat to the security and stability in Libya and a threat to Arab and regional security, as it is an interference in the internal affairs of an Arab country in flagrant violation of international principles and covenants." * – Acting foreign minister

Israel Katz Israel Katz (; born 21 September 1955) is an Israeli politician and member of the Knesset for Likud currently serving as Ministry of Defense (Israel), Minister of Defense and a member of the Security Cabinet of Israel. Katz has been recognized ...

announced Israel's opposition to the maritime border accord between Ankara and Tripoli, and confirmed that the deal was "illegal" according to the Israeli official position, while at the same time noting that Israel does not want a conflict with Turkey. Earlier in the month, the Turkish navy had driven out an Israeli oceanographic research vessel that had been operating with the consent of the Cypriot government in Cypriot waters,. This act, in the context of the deal with the GNA, led to Israeli fears that Turkey aimed to "create a sea border the width of the entire Mediterranean" and cut off Israeli access to international waters via the Mediterranean sea, the channel of 99% of Israeli exports. Energy expert Brenda Schaffer interprets the EastMed pipeline between Israel, Cyprus, and Greece (forecasted to be able to cater to 10% of Europe's gas needs, and decrease reliance on Russia) as a joint attempt to exclude Turkey from the "Club Med" gas club, but the decision to sign the deal was stated to be a response to the Turkish-Libyan deal. * – French foreign minister Jean-Yves Le Drian denounced the deal between

Ankara Ankara is the capital city of Turkey and List of national capitals by area, the largest capital by area in the world. Located in the Central Anatolia Region, central part of Anatolia, the city has a population of 5,290,822 in its urban center ( ...

and Tripoli in a joint statement with Egypt's foreign minister. President

Emmanuel Macron Emmanuel Jean-Michel Frédéric Macron (; born 21 December 1977) is a French politician who has served as President of France and Co-Prince of Andorra since 2017. He was Ministry of Economy and Finance (France), Minister of Economics, Industr ...

said his country will not permit Turkey's armed interference in Libya and charged Ankara with playing "a dangerous game". * – Iranian Foreign minister

Javad Zarif Mohammad Javad Zarif (; born 8 January 1960) is an Iranian career diplomat and academic. He served as the vice president for strategic affairs from August 2024 to March 2025.

References

{{Portal bar, Africa, Turkey 2020 in Turkey 2020 in Libya Conflicts in 2020 Military operations involving Turkey Libyan civil war (2014–2020) Libyan Crisis (2011–present) Military intervention Drone warfare Libya–Turkey relations Wars involving Turkey