1 August 2020
On 30 July, Turkish Defence Minister Hulusi Akar publically accused the United Arab Emirates (UAE) of “committing acts of malice in Libya and Syria”, while urging the UAE to “reconsider its agenda of spreading sedition”. This was combined with threats that Turkey will hold the UAE accountable “at the right place and time.”
The UAE responded to this by telling Turkey “to stop meddling in Arab affairs over Libya”
The anger exhibited by the Turkish defense minister is merely a reflection of the frustration of his boss, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. The source of frustration is the lavish, successful and extended intelligence operations the UAE has been undertaking in Libya against Islamist extremists.
Jafaj has confirmed that the UAE has been collecting intelligence on the ground in Libya since the day Qaddafi’s regime was toppled in 2011. The value of the UAE’s intelligence operations was priceless when ISIS was fully operational in Libya and actually controlled a good mass of the country, not to mention oil wealth. Because of their resources and hands on approach, the UAE was one-step ahead of many Western intelligence agencies, and did so by providing original, hands on intelligence that helped eradicate ISIS in Libya.
Turkey is accusing the UAE of supporting the ex-Libyan army general Khalifa Haftar, who has been fighting the Muslim Brotherhood-controlled Libya “Wifaq” government. While UAE has been very active in combating the Muslim Brotherhood regionally, in Libya the Muslim Brotherhood takes a priority where they have managed to control the country’s oil wealth and are a boat trip away from Europe’s shores.
What has proven to be troublesome to Turkey and the Wifaq government is the precisely accurate military information UAE’s operatives have obtained and have been passing to the United States and several other terror-fighting nations. This has resulted in successful military incursions against terrorists in Libya, including militant pro-Wifaq government fighters with direct ties to terrorist groups.
The UAE’s intelligence success is mainly built on using the right kind of informers. Some of the UAE intelligence officers have been trained to use the exact Libyan local accent. Also, a good number of Palestinians in Libya have been working directly with the UAE’s intelligence. This gives the UAE a distinct advantage as the Palestinian community is one of the largest and oldest expat communities in Libya.
Recently, Turkey’s involvement in Libyan militarily actions has put its soldiers on the frontline. This points to potential conflicts with Russian troops. Turkey’s fears are magnified by the fact that the UAE possesses information about Libya that Turkey does not. That’s because Turkey is mostly dependent on Muslim Brotherhood operatives who operate strictly within the areas controlled by the Wifaq government, while the UAE has an apparatus of intelligence assets in place within the country that goes beyond the areas under its ally, Haftar’s control.
The UAE is waging a battle against the Muslim Brotherhood and other radical ideological groups in the Middle East and North Africa region, not against Turkey. Nonetheless, Turkey’s president, Erdogan is not likely to give up his fight to save the Muslim Brotherhood, which literally dominates his ruling political party in Turkey.
Additionally, Turkey’s recent military involvement in Libya was a desperate move to save the crumbling Wifaq government. Without Turkey’s military, the Wifaq government would collapse quickly. Therefore, Turkey’s hostile official statements against UAE are driven by fear and worry more than anything else.
It’s not clear if the battle for Libya will end any time soon. What is clear is this: with many options available to them thanks to enhanced intelligence operations, all parties are rolling up their sleeves and preparing for a long and protracted intelligence war.
JaFaJ sources have confirmed that Turkey is instructing the Wifaq government to target Libya’s Palestinian community in in an effort to “crack down on potential intelligence operatives working with the UAE”, and that include “fabricating one confession if necessary”.