Libya calls back ambassador from Turkey

Libya’s Parliament has called back its ambassador from Turkey.

Quoting an unnamed source, the Dubai-based broadcaster Al Arabiya reported Sept. 2 that the Libyan Foreign Ministry accused President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan of interfering with Libya’s internal affairs after saying the relocation of Libya’s Parliament to Tobruk was “unacceptable.”

Sources from the Turkish Foreign Ministry have confirmed the Libyan ambassador is on his way back to the North African country; however, it is not clear whether he was recalled permanently as a diplomatic rebuke or for temporary consultations.

“There is no direct information on such a move that has been conveyed to our side, the Foreign Ministry, or by the Libyan officials,” a Turkish diplomat, speaking under the customary condition of anonymity, told Hürriyet Daily News on Sept. 3.  

“There is an obvious disagreement between the previous Parliament and the new Parliament of Libya over the issue, while noting the previous Parliament is against calling the ambassador back to the country,” the source added.

Currently, Turkey has no ambassadors in Syria, Egypt and Israel, as bilateral relations between Ankara and the aforementioned countries have become strained over the past three years. In July, Turkey also removed all of its diplomatic personnel from Libya, citing security risks as the main reason for the move.

Öztürk Yılmaz, Turkey’s consul general in the Iraqi city of Mosul, was taken captive by militants belonging to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) on June 10, along with 48 Turkish citizens.