WAGNER IN LIBYA

AREA: 1,759,540 sq KM
Coastline: 1770 km

BORDERING COUNTRIES: Algeria 989 km; Chad 1,050 km; Egypt 1,115 km; Niger 342 km; Sudan 382 km; Tunisia 461 km

POPULATION:7,252,573 (2023 est.)
POPULATION BELOW POVERTY LINE: about one-third of Libyans live at or below the national poverty line

URBANIZATION: 81.6% of total population (2023)

ETHNIC GROUPS:Berber and Arab 97%, other 3% (includes Egyptian, Greek, Indian, Italian, Maltese, Pakistani, Tunisian, and Turkish)

RELIGIONS: Muslim (official; virtually all Sunni) 96.6%, Christian 2.7%, Buddhist <1%, Hindu <1%, Jewish <1%, folk religion <1%, other  <1%, unafilliated <1% (2020 est.)

AGES:
0-14 years: 32.81% (male 1,213,850/female 1,166,039)

15-64 years: 62.8% (male 2,340,685/female 2,213,782)

65 years and over: 4.39% (2023 est.) (male 143,737/female 174,480)

GOVERNMENT TYPE:
In transition

INDEPENDENCE:
December 24, 1951 (from UN trusteeship)

CHIEF OF STATE: chief of state: Chairman, Presidential Council, Mohammed Al MENFI (since 5 February 2021)

Head of government: Interim Prime Minister Abdul Hamid DUBAYBAH (since 5 February 2021)

MILITARY STRENGTH:
estimates not available

REFUGEES: refugees (country of origin): 20,355 (Sudan) (refugees and asylum seekers), 11,308 (Syria) (refugees and asylum seekers), 6,716 (Eritrea) (2023)

IDPs: 134,787 (conflict between pro-QADHAFI and anti-QADHAFI forces in 2011; post-QADHAFI tribal clashes 2014) (2022)

TERRORISTS: Ansar al-Sharia groups; Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham – Libya (ISIS-L); al-Mulathamun Battalion (al-Mourabitoun); al-Qa’ida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM)

SOURCE: https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/libya/#military-and-security

WAGNER PMC has been fighting in Libya in support of the Libyan National Army led by Khalifa Haftar. 

LEADERSHIP

KUZNETSOV, Aleksandr (Alexander) Sergeevich

(Александр Сергеевич КУЗНЕЦОВ)

Position (s): Commander of 1st Attack and Reconnaissance Company of the Wagner Group

Callsign: Ratibor

Date of birth: 8 October 1977

Place of birth: Nikolskoye, former USSR (now Russian Federation)

Nationality: Russian

Wagner Group ID: M-0271

Gender: male

Aleksandr Sergeevich Kuznetsov belongs to the command structure of the Wagner Group, a Russia-based unincorporated private military entity. He took command of the 1st Attack and Reconnaissance Company of the Wagner Group in 2014. He was injured in September 2019 in Libya while fighting alongside the Libyan National Liberation Army (NLA) as commander of the Wagner Group’s military operatives. Through his position and actions, Kuznetsov is responsible for the Wagner Group’s activities that threaten the peace, stability and security of Libya.