UK to end training of Libyan troops early after sex attacks

LONDON (Reuters) - The first wave of Libyan army cadets being trained in Britain will be sent home early, British Defence Secretary Michael Fallon said on Tuesday, after five were charged over a series of sex attacks on local residents. Two cadets have been charged with raping a man in Cambridge on Oct. 26, Cambridgeshire Police said. Three more were charged with sexual assaults on women in Cambridge the same day, police said. Two of the men pled guilty at Cambridge Magistrates' Court last week. Cambridgeshire Police said it had also received nine reports of sexual assaults on Oct. 17 Britain played a key role in the Libyan revolution that overthrew Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, mounting an air campaign against Gaddafi's forces. But Libya has failed to build up its security forces and disarm rebels militias since then, leaving the country on the brink of chaos. It is split between rival factions, with two governments vying for legitimacy and Amnesty International accusing all sides of war crimes. To help rectify the Libyan military's shortcomings, Britain has been training the group of more than 300 Libyan cadets in basic infantry skills and military leadership at Bassingbourn, near Cambridge in south-east England, since June. They had been due to return to Libya at the end of November. "The majority of recruits have responded positively to the training despite the ongoing political uncertainty in Libya, but there have been disciplinary issues," Fallon said in a statement on Tuesday. "We have agreed with the Libyan government that it is best for all involved to bring forward the training completion date. The recruits will be returning to Libya in the coming days." Former government minister Andrew Lansley, the area's representative in parliament, on Monday asked the ministry to halt the programme following the attacks. The government had agreed last year agreed to train up to 2,000 Libyan security personnel as part of international efforts to support Libya. Now it says it will review whether to continue training further tranches of recruits in Britain. (Reporting by Kylie MacLellan)