The University of Benghazi in eastern Libya turned the page on the effects of the war years, which extended to its campus, and reopened its doors after completing the final phase of its reconstruction project and rehabilitation of its facilities.
This step was seen by observers as restoring its academic role to one of the oldest educational edifices in the country, after damage it sustained during the battles that the city witnessed between the “National Army” led by Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, the “ISIS” organization, and extremist groups between 2014 and 2016.
With the completion of the rehabilitation work, Haftar opened late on Friday the final phase of the university reconstruction project, in a ceremony attended by the Prime Minister-designate of the House of Representatives, Osama Hammad, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aguila Saleh, along with officials and academics.
The words of the participants in the celebration recalled part of the memory of the war, which reached the university, where Haftar indicated that its cessation for many years left a wound in the city’s memory, while he linked what Benghazi witnessed during that stage to the battles that his forces fought against armed groups.
For his part, Aguila Saleh was keen to recall the damage caused to educational facilities during the conflict, stressing that educational facilities are considered civilian objects protected under international humanitarian law, and may not be targeted or used for military purposes during armed conflicts.
Saleh spoke at length about what the university was exposed to during the years of fighting, including shells, mines, and acts of sabotage, which affected its halls, libraries, offices, facilities, and gardens, while the head of the Libya Development and Reconstruction Fund, Belkacem Haftar, described the university’s return as a new beginning after years of damage caused by the war.
Academics and students have not forgotten the effects of the war that began affecting the University of Benghazi in the Garyounis area since May 2014, with the escalation of armed confrontations in the city between the National Army forces and extremist groups. In June of the same year, missiles fired during the fighting hit a number of university buildings, damaging classrooms, laboratories, and training facilities.
Confrontations around the university campus escalated in October 2014, with continued fighting between Haftar’s forces and fighters from the Benghazi Revolutionaries Shura Council, ISIS, and other armed formations. As the battles extended, parts of the university were subjected to additional damage, while some of its facilities were used during military operations.
In 2015, the extent of damage to the university campus expanded, before Haftar’s forces announced on April 17, 2016, control of the university, after battles with ISIS and other armed formations. This was followed by operations to remove mines and secure buildings, in preparation for the resumption of university activity.
Libyan political analyst, Omar Boussaida, believes that evoking the war experience at the moment the university is celebrating its rehabilitation “does not necessarily mean stopping at the past,” considering that “it could form part of the city’s memory and its experience with armed violence, especially since the end of the battles does not necessarily mean the disappearance of its social and political effects.”
Bou Saida told Asharq Al-Awsat that remembering that stage could contribute to enhancing awareness of the dangers of the return of extremist groups, considering that societies that have gone through violent experiences need to preserve their memory, while transforming it from a painful experience into a lesson that helps avoid its recurrence.
About 3 years ago, the Benghazi reconstruction project was launched, and included the University of Benghazi as one of the main facilities in the city. The project work included the rehabilitation of academic, vital and historical facilities, in addition to developing parts of the university campus.
The rehabilitation work included the implementation of internal roads, the development of academic buildings and classrooms, in addition to equipping and furnishing works, and raising the readiness of a number of university campus facilities, allowing the restoration of academic activity in a more suitable environment.
The University of Benghazi holds a prominent place in the history of Libyan higher education, as its establishment dates back to December 15, 1955, when the law establishing the “Libyan University” in Benghazi was issued. The university was officially opened on January 22, 1956, and studies began the next day at the College of Arts and Education, which received 31 students, according to the university’s official website.
In August 1973, the university’s name was changed to “University of Benghazi,” and in 174 it moved from its old headquarters inside the city to its current headquarters in the Garyounis area. In 1976, its name was changed to “Garyounis University,” before the name “University of Benghazi” returned to it on February 17, 2011, coinciding with the re-annexation of medical colleges to it.
With the return of studies to its rehabilitated buildings, the University of Benghazi regains part of its role that extended for more than 7 decades, while the effects of war remain part of the history of the place and the memory of the city.
Israel moved to support Ethiopia at a time that coincided with weeks of Egyptian escalation in its rhetoric towards Addis Ababa, against the backdrop of the Nile water crisis and fears that Egypt’s water share would be harmed as a result of the failure to agree on filling and operating the “Renaissance Dam.”
These moves, the former Minister of Foreign Affairs, member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Chairman of the Egyptian Council for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Mohamed Al-Orabi, downplayed their repercussions, noting that they “will not harm and will not change” Egypt’s positions, according to statements to Asharq Al-Awsat.
Israeli support for Ethiopia
The Israeli Ambassador to Ethiopia, Abraham Negusi, confirmed that Israel “will continue to strengthen its support for Ethiopia, with the aim of helping it become a leading economic power on the African continent.”
The Israeli ambassador explained, in statements reported by Ethiopian media on Friday, that “cooperation between Ethiopia and Israel would help Addis Ababa rely on its own capabilities, preserve its sovereignty, and strengthen its economy,” expressing his belief that “this cooperation will grow stronger and more continuous across new generations.”
He stated that the relations between the two parties “are based on 4 main axes, including cooperation and mutual support in international forums on the basis of common interests, enhancing governmental cooperation between the two countries, in addition to expanding the scope of private investments.”
Al-Orabi confirms, in an interview with Asharq Al-Awsat, that “cooperation between Ethiopia and Israel is not new and has been in place for a long time, and what we are currently witnessing of intense Ethiopian activity and movements towards several international and regional parties comes within the framework of attempts to cover up its internal crises and problems, and in an effort to strengthen its position and appear as the major regional power in Africa, which is contrary to the actual reality.”
He asserts, “These behaviors and political orientations of the Ethiopian government completely contradict the nature of the presence of the African Union headquarters in Addis Ababa. “This requires rethinking and research into different options during the coming period regarding the suitability of continuing the Union’s headquarters there.”
In turn, Ahmed Alaa Fayed, a member of the Foreign Relations Committee of the Egyptian House of Representatives, said in an interview with Asharq Al-Awsat that the Egyptian state is well following and monitoring Israeli movements in the region, including movements with Ethiopia.
He stressed that “if this Ethiopian-Israeli cooperation goes beyond affecting Egyptian interests directly or indirectly, Cairo will certainly take all paths that preserve its rights.”
Egypt's position
This Israeli support for Ethiopia comes amid a sharp Egyptian tone towards Ethiopia regarding the Renaissance Dam. Last August, Egypt stressed more than once that the water issue is “national security and a red line, and that Cairo is capable of defending it,” according to a statement from an official source reported by the Egyptian News Agency. Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdel Ati also hinted at using the “right of legitimate defense” regarding developments in the Nile River file and the Renaissance Dam crisis.
After about less than a decade, negotiations between Cairo and Addis Ababa were frozen for 3 years, before resuming in 2023, then they were frozen again in 2024, amid the refusal of Ethiopia, which is considered an upstream country, to conclude an agreement, and its assertion that it does not harm Egypt or Sudan, the two downstream countries.
Regarding the impact of this Israeli-Ethiopian cooperation in Egypt, Al-Orabi added that Egypt “is moving with steadfastness in the middle of a turbulent and unstable region that is witnessing rapid changes and alliances, and is managing these changes with all wisdom and sobriety in a way that protects its national interests and national security, and is capable of managing the situation, and this will not undermine cooperation or change its positions.”
He stressed that “any growth in regional relations or alliances between Ethiopia and Israel will in no way undermine Egyptian positions in managing its relations, nor will it undermine Egypt’s status and regional weight at all.”
For his part, Ahmed Alaa Fayed believes that “Cairo is capable of preserving its security and rights, and will not accept any infringement on them, especially since it is in agreement with international laws and norms, whether in the Renaissance Dam file or elsewhere, and Ethiopia and Israel know that.”
