The Touareg Salafi Katiba 315 camp in Fezzan. Demotix/Maryline Dumas. All rights reserved.Four years since the fall and assassination of Qaddafi, Libya remains in a state of chaos, threatening the territorial unity of the country and its population. This alarming situation is also on the verge of creating transnational chaos right across north Africa and the Sahel, as its overspill has already had dramatic consequences in Mali and nascent democratic Tunisia.
Moreover, this political and security landscape is all too often portrayed and presented through the lens of a bilateral conflict between the western Tripolitania and the eastern Cyrenaica provinces. Consequently, the socio-political role of the Fezzan southern region may be overlooked, despite the fact that this immense territory is inhabited by a number of influential tribes whose demands and roles could, if not recognised, further threaten Libya’s political and territorial unity.
Importantly, in the aftermath of the recent terrorist attacks in Paris, there is also a high risk of linking these tragic Parisian events with the ongoing Libyan crisis, which could eventually lead to the wrong approach and strategy for a lasting solution for Libya.
