By financial analyst Khaled Al-Zantouti
A member of the Economic Salon group shared a video documenting a citizen following a convoy stretching for five kilometers along the border, loaded with smuggled flour and possibly other goods, headed toward neighboring countries. The citizen was heard saying, “They’re feeding Sudan and Chad.” It was a simple remark from an ordinary citizen, yet it eloquently and accurately captures the situation in Libya.
This is the tragic reality we live in amid the disintegration of the state and the absence of sovereignty over our national territory. Yes, this situation—and many others like it—unfolds by land, sea, and perhaps even air, as fuel and other goods, all entirely exempt from customs duties, are traded and sold to merchants in other countries in exchange for payments in dinars or dollars.
The dinars are then returned to the Mushir Market, the Venice Market, and other markets, where dollars are purchased at any price. The dollars are subsequently transferred or smuggled to Türkiye, the Gulf states, or even Europe, where they end up in personal accounts outside the country. If only that money stayed within Libya!
Unfortunately, this is our tragic reality. The absence of a state capable of protecting the country’s borders and resources has indeed left us “feeding” other peoples at the expense of our national currency, which continues to deteriorate, while we lose access to essential goods that should, in principle, be imported by means of letters of credit opened at the official exchange rate, without customs duties, and for the benefit of Libyans.
Even more astonishingly, some merchants—without generalizing—come forward and claim that this is intra-regional trade that helps strengthen the balance of payments. What kind of trade is this, and what kind of balance of payments are they talking about? May God forgive them.
As a result, our dinar depreciates, domestic commodity prices rise astronomically, and inflation continues to climb. The Central Bank becomes increasingly unable to defend the dinar, while some people’s pockets fill up and their dollar-denominated accounts swell. Meanwhile, ordinary citizens suffer under the burden of hardship and the cruelty of time.
Is it not time for all of us—merchants, governments, members of the House of Representatives, the High Council of State, the army, armed groups, and the public—to wake up and restore the dignity of our homeland? Libya is our homeland and our refuge.
May God grant success to those who are sincere in their efforts. Enough of this division. Let us all return to one homeland that protects us all:
“Indeed, Allah will not change the condition of a people until they change what is in themselves.” (Qur’an 13:11)
