The handover ceremony was held in the presence of the Commander of Joint Operations, Army Corps General Francesco Paolo Figliuolo.
Air Vice-Marshal Dario Antonio Missaglia is the new commander of the Italian bilateral assistance and support mission (MIASIT) in Libya. The changeover ceremony took place during the two-day visit to the Italian contingent in Libya of Army Corps General Francesco Paolo Figliuolo, the Joint Interforce Operational Commander (COVI), which concluded on 18 September and was attended by the Italian Ambassador to Tripoli, Gianluca Alberini, and the Defence Attaché, Captain Francesco Marino, diplomatic representatives, and various civil and military authorities.
The ceremony formalised the handover to the Brigadier General Michele Fraterrigo, of the Italian Army, in command of the contingent since September 2022.
During the visit, General Figliuolo brought the greetings of the Minister of Defence to the Italian military personnel. Guido Crosetto and the Chief of the Defence Staff Admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone, thanking them for the professionalism and dedication they have shown in the complex Libyan scenario and underlining the ever-increasing centrality that MIASIT and the Armed Forces are assuming within the broader Italian presence in the African country and in the Wider Mediterranean, a quadrant of strategic importance for Italy.
The visit of the COVI Commander to Libya takes place a few days after the flood that hit the area of Derna, in the Cyrenaica region, where Italian Armed Forces, Civil Protection, Fire Brigade and Red Cross efforts are currently concentrated to provide support to Libyan Authorities, to offer first aid and help the population cope with basic needs. The Air Force, in particular, has provided support with two C 130 J departing from the military airport in Pisa, facilitating the transport of Fire Brigade personnel and, in particular, aquatic risk experts with their relative equipment. Support and essential logistical materials.
“With the Libyan people”, highlighted the General Figliuolo during his speech, “We have always had relations of exchange, closeness and friendship, so our commitment here must continue without hesitation and with all the tools at our disposal, at the country system level, thus with the presence of our Armed Forces on the ground and in synergy with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation”.
During his visit to Tripoli and Misrata, General Figliuolo, accompanied by a delegation from COVI, met with the Italian contingent's military personnel and various military figures from the African country. Together with Ambassador Alberini, he reached Abu Sittah to meet with the Chief of Defence Staff, General Mohammed el-Haddad, to whom General Figliuolo expressed his closeness for the difficult period that the Libyan people are going through. Among the topics discussed was the long-standing cooperation between Italy and Libya regarding the training and education activities of local Security Forces and Special Forces.
At the end of the military ceremony in Tripoli, the COVI delegation reached the new compound housing the Italian soldiers of MIASIT in the city of Misrata. The visit continued to the adjacent Air Force Academy for a meeting with the Commander of the Institute, Major General Sovereign of the Ages.
