Authorities in eastern Libya on Tuesday expelled the interior ministers of Italy, Greece, and Malta, along with the EU Commissioner for Migration, upon their arrival in Benghazi, declaring them “unwelcome persons”.
The move came after the European delegation visited Tripoli to meet with the internationally recognized Government of National Unity, without prior coordination with the rival eastern-based administration.
The Benghazi government, backed by Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, condemned the visit as a “blatant breach of diplomatic protocol” and announced the cancellation of all planned engagements with the delegation.
This escalation follows a directive issued two days earlier by eastern authorities outlining new procedures for diplomatic and international missions visiting areas under their control.
Libya has remained divided politically and militarily since the fall of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, split between the UN-backed government in Tripoli and a parallel administration in the east, amid ongoing instability and lack of unified governance.
