Libyan PM met Mossad chief in Jordan to discuss normalization: Report

Posted on September 5, 2023 by fada1

SEP 4, 2023

The meeting, which took place in 2022, was sponsored by the US and the UAE

According to a classified diplomatic cable obtained by Lebanese daily Al-Akhbar, Libyan Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh met with the head of the Israeli spy agency Mossad, David Barnea, in the Jordanian capital Amman last year to discuss “practical steps to normalize relations” between the two countries.

Specifically, the meeting dealt with “the possibility of Israeli political and military support for Dbeibeh,” who controls Libya’s western regions, in exchange for the North African country joining the Abraham Accords.

The director of Jordanian intelligence, Major General Ahmad Husni, was tasked with ensuring the meeting was held in absolute secrecy. The document also highlights that “this conversation was arranged in cooperation with Jordan and the United Arab Emirates under the supervision of the United States.”

The UAE reportedly participated on the condition that a possible normalization agreement would also include the government of Khalifa Haftar, who controls the country’s eastern regions and is supported by Abu Dhabi.

Monday’s revelations fly in the face of the official position of Dbeibeh’s government following last week’s diplomatic blunder by the Israeli foreign ministry, when they revealed details of a secret meeting between Israel’s top diplomat and sacked Libyan foreign minister Najla Mangoush in Rome.

In the wake of the crisis, Dbeibeh’s office feigned ignorance about the meeting, as did his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu. Nonetheless, after fleeing Libya and being sacked from her job, Mangoush confirmed that her talk with Foreign Minister Eli Cohen was approved by the prime ministers of both nations.

Furthermore, two Libyan officials revealed to AP last week that Dbeibeh met with CIA director William Burns in Tripoli last January to discuss normalizing relations with Israel, following his meeting with the Mossad chief in Jordan.

According to the diplomatic cable obtained by Al-Akhbar, Mangoush, and Dbeibeh are not the only Libyan officials being approached about normalization with Israel, as diplomatic channels reportedly also exist with the speaker of the House of Representatives in the east of the country, Aguila Saleh Issa, who is affiliated with Haftar, and the president of the Libyan Council of State, Khaled al-Mishri, based in the west.

Tel Aviv’s blunder last week caused an uproar in Washington, as the White House chastised senior Israeli officials for the “irresponsible behavior” of foreign minister Cohen, saying it harmed efforts to accelerate normalization between Israel and Arab countries.

Under a 1957 law in Libya, it is illegal to have formal relations with Israel, as former president Muammar al-Gaddafi was a strong supporter of the Palestinian cause. Pro-Palestinian sentiment has remained strong since a NATO-led bombing campaign and insurgency toppled Gaddafi’s government in 2011 and plunged the country into chaos.