A secret session will be held, on Monday, to take a decision on granting President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi the mandate to send Egyptian forces into Libya, according to Parliamentary Deputy Sayed Al-Sharif.
In a televised interview on Sunday evening, Al-Sharif said that Article 152 of Egypt’s constitution stipulates that the state does not declare war and does not send its forces on combat missions. The exception to this stipulation would be following the approval given by the House of Representatives.
Al-Sharif indicated that the internal regulations governing parliament’s work “must be confidential in order to preserve the Egyptian national security”.
“In these situations there is no majority or opposition, we are all one vote to support our Egyptian state in facing these dangers,” he said, regarding voting on the authorisation decision, “We are a respectable state of institutions, which always respects the basic rules for preserving the constitution.”
Al-Sharif emphasised Libyan House of Representatives Speaker Aguila Saleh’s visit to the Egyptian parliament in January, during which he requested Egyptian intervention in Libya. Saleh noted that Egyptiab intervention would support the Libyan Arab Armed Forces (LAAF) led by Commander Khalifa Haftar, in the face of Government of National Accord (GNA) forces.
The LAAF is backed by Egypt and the UAE and, whilst the internationally recognised GNA has been receiving support from Turkey.
Sharif reaffirmed Egypt’s support of the Libyan people, and that the Egyptian parliament will not delay giving Al-Sisi a “full mandate”.
On Sunday, Egypt’s parliament had postponed discussions granting Cairo’s mandate to intervene in Libya to a session scheduled for Monday.
In June, President Al-Sisi had warned that any militia advance towards Sirte and Jufra would be a “red line” that cannot be crossed.
Earlier this week, Al-Sisi met with a number of representatives from Libyan tribes, who announced their support for Egyptian intervention in Libya.
This coincides with the GNA sending further reinforcements to the front lines within the Libyan coastal city of Sirte.
