A group of companies tied to Khalifa Haftar helped funnel hundreds of millions of dollars into the eastern Libyan commander’s failed 2019–2020 assault on Tripoli, according to a new investigation, and left the Libyan people to bear the cost.

The report published on Tuesday by The Sentry, an investigative and policy organisation, said Libyan businessman Ahmed Gadalla functioned as a “key enabler” for Haftar family members, who secured $300m in loans from a “minor” bank based in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) ahead of the offensive.

The months-long campaign by forces loyal to the renegade military commander to seize the Libyan capital from the United Nations-recognised government killed hundreds of people and displaced hundreds of thousands.

The cost of the campaign was significant. “The offensive required a roughly $700 million effort mobilised upfront,” Sentry stated.

According to the investigation, the money likely helped finance operations including payments to Russia’s mercenary Wagner Group, which supported Haftar’s offensive.

The campaign eventually saw Haftar’s Libyan National Army get pushed back from the capital and lose a string of western towns to forces loyal to the Government of National Accord.

“After Haftar’s offensive collapsed, the loans have remained largely unpaid, leaving the Libyan public to bear the financial burden while Gadalla has faced no accountability,” the report said.

Neither Gadalla nor the banks named in the report responded to requests for comment, The Sentry said.

Libya, a major oil-producing nation, has been mired in turmoil since 2011, when longtime ruler Muammar Gaddafi was overthrown and killed during an uprising.

Despite the failure to take Tripoli, The Sentry alleges Gadalla has since expanded his influence across eastern Libya’s financial system, under the protection of Haftar’s son Saddam, and exerts control over key banks.

“Gadalla has transitioned from an obscure financier to a dominant force in eastern Libya’s economy,” the report reads.

“Gadalla has wielded control over the Bank of Commerce and Development (BCD) and other financial institutions in eastern Libya, such as Wahda Bank and National Commercial Bank, using them to facilitate large-scale letter-of-credit fraud and to launder illicit profits,” the investigation claims.

The Libyan national is also reported to be involved in the circulation of counterfeit “Russian-printed dinars” that has weakened Libya’s local currency.

Arms procurement

The report also links Gadalla to efforts to procure and transfer military equipment to Sudan, in violation of a UN arms embargo.

Plans to secure Chinese drones, ammunition and armoured vehicles have been hatched. The Sentry said that in July, a 145m (475-foot) container ship operated by Gadalla loaded hundreds of containers of ammunition and military vehicles in the UAE before heading to Benghazi, a Haftar stronghold.

The UAE has long denied accusations that it has been providing arms to Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

European authorities later intercepted the vessel off the Greek island of Crete, where a search uncovered the cargo despite shipping documents listing civilian goods, the investigation said.

Since hostilities erupted between the RSF and Sudan’s national army in April 2023, the conflict has ravaged the East African country, with the worst impact in Darfur, where the RSF has entrenched its dominance.

The violence has left tens of thousands dead and forced approximately 11 million people from their homes, triggering the largest displacement and hunger crisis in the world.

“The impunity of such second-tier operators is sustained by the fragmentation of Libyan state institutions and the diplomatic void,” the report said, warning that financial enablers play a critical role in sustaining armed groups and entrenching corruption.

The group called on Western governments, including the United States and countries in the European Union, to impose targeted sanctions on Gadalla and his network.

“Without concerted international action to hold enablers like Gadalla accountable, Libya faces the continued erosion of its economic foundations,” it concluded.