Libyan Army (1951–2011)
| Libyan Army | |
|---|---|
| Active | 1951 – 2011 |
| Country |
 Kingdom of Libya Libyan Arab Republic Libyan Arab Jamahiriya
|
| Allegiance |
Kingdom of Libya (1951–1969) Libyan Arab Republic (1969–1977) Libyan Arab Jamahiriya (1977–2011) |
| Type | Army |
| Size | 40,000 |
| Headquarters | Tripoli, LIbya |
| Engagements |
Libyan–Egyptian War Uganda-Tanzania War Toyota War Libyan Civil War |
| Insignia | |
| Identification mark |  |
The Libyan Army was the branch of the Armed Forces of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, the Libyan Arab Republic and the Libyan Kingdom responsible for ground warfare.
When Libya gained its independence in 1951, veterans of the original Sanusi Army formed the nucleus of the Royal Libyan Army. Though the Libyan army has a large amount of fighting equipment at its disposal, the vast majority was bought from the Soviet Union in the 1970s and 1980s and was largely obsolete at the time of the Libyan civil war. A high percentage remains in storage and a large amount of equipment has also been sold to various African countries. The Libyan Army was generally regarded as neither efficient nor well trained.
From the late seventies to the mid to late eighties the army was involved in four major incursions into Chadian Territory. The Libyan Army suffered great losses in these conflicts especially that of the Toyota War of 1987 largely due to poor tactics and western aid to Chad. All of these incursions were eventually repulsed and Libya no longer occupies Chad. This conflict was known as the Chadian–Libyan conflict. In February 2011, the Libyan civil war broke out and several units of the army mutinied and defected to the opposition, with battles taking place across much of the country.
In September 2011, the pre-civil war Libyan army had been effectively destroyed by a combination of NATO air strikes and combat with rebel forces, with the Libyan army forces still loyal to Gaddafi abandoning their posts in Tripoli as the rebels took the city, and the remnants of Gaddafi's loyalist army holed up in Sirte, Sabha and Bani Walid.
Gaddafi's army was defeated in their last major stronghold of Sirte. Muammar Gaddafi, along with his son Mutassim and former defense minister Abu-Bakr Yunis Jabr were killed and the remnants of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya army were completely destroyed.
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