The Egyptian intervention in Libya has been substantial since the beginning of the Libyan civil war. The intervention started after the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) released a video of the beheading of 21 Egyptians on 12 February 2015. In response, Egypt launched airstrikes on 16 February, that same year. After that incident, Egypt became increasingly involved with Libya's internal politics.

Timeline

2015

On 12 February, ISIL released a video of the group beheading Coptic Christians, all of which were Egyptians. On 16 February 2015, Egyptian F-16s struck weapons caches and training camps of the

Islamic State The Islamic State (IS), also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and Daesh, is a transnational Salafi jihadism, Salafi jihadist organization and unrecognized quasi-state. IS ...

(ISIS) in Libya. The air strikes killed 64 ISIS fighters, including three leaders in Derna and

Sirte Sirte (; , ), also spelled Sirt, Surt, Sert or Syrte, is a city in Libya. It is located south of the Gulf of Sirte, almost right in the middle between Tripoli and Benghazi. It is famously known for its battles, ethnic groups and loyal ...

on the coast. 55 were captured in ground assaults. 7 civilians were also killed by the air strike.

2018

Egypt and the

UAE The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a federal elective monarchy made up of seven emirates, with Abu Dhabi serving as i ...

carried out multiple airstrikes in Derna in May, June, and September against ISIL. However, the Libyan Express released a video alleging that Egyptian soldiers were at the front line alongside the

Libyan National Army The Libyan National Army (LNA; , ''al-jaysh al-waṭaniyy al-Lībii''), also known as the Libyan Arab Army (LAA; , ''al-Jaysh al-'Arabiyy al-Lībii'') or the Libyan Arab Armed Forces (LAAF; ), is a component of Libyan Armed Forces, Libya's mil ...

2019

On 5 April, Egypt expressed its deep concern over a campaign in Tripoli and urged all sides to avoid escalation. Egypt also announced its commitment to UN efforts to find a political solution to the Libyan Crisis, adding that a political solution is the only option. On 9 April,

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

expressed support for the

and its push to dismantle all remaining militias, and also cautioned against foreign intervention in the conflict. On 14 April, President of

Abdel Fattah el-Sisi Abdel Fattah Saeed Hussein Khalil El-Sisi (born 19 November 1954) is an Egyptian politician and retired military officer who has been serving as the sixth and current president of Egypt since 2014. After the 2011 Egyptian revolution and 201 ...

, met with LNA Field Marshal

Khalifa Haftar Khalifa Haftar (; born 7 November 1943) is a Libyan-American politician, military officer, and the commander of the Tobruk-based Libyan National Army (LNA). In 2015, he was appointed commander of the armed forces loyal to the 2014 Libyan parliam ...

Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...

and announced his support for the LNA's counterterrorism efforts, stating that "the fight toward terrorism"..."allows the establishment of a stable and sovereign civil state, and will start the reconstruction of Libya in various fields."

2020

On 5 July, Egyptian warplanes hit a site where Turkey was allegedly building a military base. On 19 July, The Egyptian President made public threats to the

Government of National Accord The Government of National Accord (GNA; ) was an interim government for Libya that was formed under the terms of the Libyan Political Agreement, a United Nations–led initiative, signed on 17 December 2015. The agreement was unanimously endors ...

(GNA) that Egypt would deploy troops if

were to be captured, which was viewed by the GNA as a declaration of war.Libya's GNA call Egypt's military threat as a 'declaration of war'
''Al-Jazeera'' The next day, Egypt deployed an undisclosed number of troops into Libya. Many politicians and news sources say due to Turkish military intervention in Libya from earlier in 2020.

References

{{reflist Libyan civil war (2014–2020) Egypt–Libya relations

Libya Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...