The British "Independent" reveals the secret negotiations to avoid the collapse of Libya 10 years ago

The British newspaper The Independent revealed secret talks that it said would have saved the late Libyan President Muammar Gaddafi after the outbreak of protests calling for his departure 10 years ago, and an agreement has already been reached to resign him and leave politics in exchange for preserving state institutions.

The newspaper said that two months after the outbreak of protests in Libya, and the matter turned into brutal conflict and NATO intervention, and two thousand miles from the two warring parties, a secret agreement was reached to end the war.

On the tenth anniversary of the NATO intervention, the newspaper revealed the full details of the secret talks with Norwegian mediation, and said that they were the closest to reaching a peaceful end to the civil war in Libya.

The two sides agreed on a preliminary text stating that Muammar Gaddafi, who ruled Libya for 42 years, will step down from his post and leave politics while preserving state institutions in place. In the end, the talks failed, and the rebels, with NATO support, captured and killed Gaddafi.

In his first interview with the international media regarding the 2011 negotiations, former Norwegian Foreign Minister Jonas Stor, who reached the agreement, accused both France and Britain of opposing the negotiated solution.

And as long as the former British Prime Minister David Cameron and former French President Nicolas Sarkozy faced accusations in some quarters of seeking to change the system at any price, which was denied by both of them.

Store told The Independent that he felt that thinking in London and Paris was not really open to the diplomatic option. He added, "Were France and Britain ready to consider something other than military solutions, a decision that has not been decided yet?"

He continued, saying: If there was a willingness in the international community to go down this path with some authority and dedication, I think there would have been an opportunity to achieve a less dramatic result and avoid the collapse of the Libyan state.