Egyptian Parliament authorises President Abdulfatah El-Sisi to send the Egyptian Army to Libya

Egypt’s parliament gave President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi the green light for possible military intervention in Libya by approving the deployment of armed forces abroad to fight “terrorist groups” and “militias”.

Sisi warned last week that Egypt would not stand idle if there was a threat to national security in Egypt and its western neighbour, Libya.

Egypt, alongside the United Arab Emirates and Russia, backs Haftar, who abandoned an offensive on the capital Tripoli last month against forces backed by Turkey.

Libyan lawmakers allied to Haftar asked Cairo this month to intervene militarily to counter Turkey.

The Egyptian parliament said in a statement on Monday’s vote that troops would be defending national security on a “strategic” western front, without giving details, any time frame or naming Libya directly. It also did not mention Turkey.