BICOM

What happened: Accusations continue to fly in Israel following reports of a secret meeting in Rome that caused major demonstrations in Libya and led to the firing of the Foreign Minister.

• On Sunday evening, following rumours on social media, Israel released a statement confirming that Foreign Minister Eli Cohen last week met with the Libyan Foreign Minister Najla Mangoush in Italy “with the aim of studying options of cooperation and ties between both countries, as well as the protection of the Libyan Jewish heritage.”
• Protests subsequently erupted in Libya and Mangoush was fired by the Libyan Prime Minister Abdul Hamid al-Dbeibeh.
• Having fled to Istanbul, she claimed that the Prime Minister authorised her to disclose the meeting and added that she and Cohen met spontaneously at an event at the Italian Foreign Ministry, “It was a casual, unplanned meeting. We did not engage in diplomatic steps or fostering relations.”
• Libya’s Foreign Ministry also emphasised that that the meeting between the two sides was “unplanned and incidental.” It added that the meeting did not include “discussions, agreements, or consultations,” and that Tripoli “outright rejects” normalisation with Israel.
• Cohen was roundly criticised by Israeli politicians and security officials. Opposition Chairman Yair Lapid said: “This is what happens when Eli Cohen, a person with no background in the field, is appointed foreign minister for just a year. The incident with the Libyan foreign minister was amateurish, irresponsible, and a serious failure in judgment. This is a morning of national disgrace and risking human lives for the sake of a headline.”
• Channel 12 News reported officials from Mossad: “The minister’s behaviour caused enormous damage to a relationship that was quietly and cautiously cultivated in recent years. He burned the bridge. That is irreparable.”
• Walla News reported that American sources believe the publication of the meeting caused “great damage to the normalisation”.
• Israeli political officials argued that it had been agreed that the meeting would be publicised. Cohen responded to criticism, saying that “It’s a shame that political rivals who failed to advance any meaningful achievement have rushed to react without knowing the details and have accused [me] of a leak that never happened. The attacks won’t deter the Foreign Ministry and its employees.”
• On Tuesday morning, a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office demanded that cabinet ministers inform PM Netanyahu of any covert diplomatic activity. Two government sources told Haaretz that Netanyahu knew that the Foreign Ministry was in contact with the Libyan government based in Tripoli. They were unable to confirm what was agreed on between him and Cohen regarding the announcement.

Context: Since the Abraham Accords in 2020 between Israel, UAE, Bahrain and later Morocco, Israel has sought to expand its relations in the Arab and Muslim world.

• Libya has largely been at war since a NATO-backed uprising in 2011. It split in 2014 between warring eastern (Benghazi) and western (Tripoli) factions, though open conflict has mostly paused since a ceasefire in 2020.
• In March 2021, a Government of National Unity (GNU) based in Tripoli with Dbeibeh as the internationally-recognised prime minister was installed through a UN-backed process in 2021 aimed at holding elections later that year which were cancelled because of disputes over the rules.
• In March 2022 the country was divided again when the eastern-based parliament formed the rival Government of National Stability (GNS) under the leadership of prime minister Fathi Bashagha.
• Israel and Libya have never enjoyed formal ties. However, contacts reportedly took place between the former ruler Muammar Gaddafi’s son Saif al-Islam and Israeli officials.
• In 2021, the son of Khalifa Haftar, who ruled the eastern part of Libya, reportedly visited Israel for a secret meeting with Israeli officials in which he offered to establish diplomatic relations between the two countries in return for Israeli support.
• In January Dbeibeh reportedly discussed the idea of normalising relations with Israel with CIA Director William Burns. Sources in Libya suggest Dbeibeh was attempting to buy Washington’s backing for his government.
• The Mossad’s Tevel Division is responsible for Israel-Libya relations and has cultivated those ties over a long period of time, behind the scenes and with a great deal of sensitivity.

Looking Ahead: Questions remains as to how the domestic response in Libya will impact attempts to promote normalisation between Israel and other Arab and Muslim countries in the near future.

• Nonetheless, discussions between US, Israeli, and Saudi officials over normalisation between Israel and Saudi Arabia continue.
• Israeli and American officials fear that given the response to the revelation of the meeting, other countries might be deterred from publicising their covert relations with Israel public.