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 "There is no other choice, taking into account the agreement of
the Libyan people and government and that they call on us to act,"
he told France's Europe 1 radio in an interview aired on Tuesday.
"We have to work together to defeat terrorism."
Egypt directly intervened for the first time in the conflict in
neighboring Libya on Monday after an Islamic State group in the
country released a video showing the beheading of 21 Egyptian
Christians.
Sisi said a 2011 NATO operation, which played a critical role in
toppling former leader Muammar Gaddafi, was an "unfinished mission".
The Western alliance imposed a no-fly zone on Libya and used air
power to try to prevent Gaddafi's forces from attacking civilian
areas held by rebels. But it then did little to prevent the country
from sliding into anarchy and chaos.
"We abandoned the Libyan people as prisoners to extremist militias,"
the Egyptian president said.
In Rome, Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi also called for action
from the United Nations, but did not say whether Italy itself would
support any direct military operation in Libya.
"There was renewed Italian commitment for strong diplomatic action
within the framework of the U.N. and support for an urgent
initiative at the Security Council to promote stability and peace in
Libya," said a statement following a meeting between Renzi and his
defense and interior ministers.
Libya is separated from the Italian island of Sicily by only a few
hundred kilometers of sea and has been a launching pad in recent
years for hundreds of thousands of African and Middle East migrants
seeking a better life in Europe.
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Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni and Defense Minister Roberta
Pinotti have both said Rome would be ready to join any military
intervention but Renzi has struck a more cautious note, saying on
Monday it was important to avoid "hysteria" and that any action had
to be under U.N. authority.
Sisi called on various Libyan militias to disarm, while urging the
outside world to send weapons to Libya's internationally recognized
government, which is based in the eastern city of Tobruk after
rivals seized power in Tripoli.
The Tobruk government has also asked for the lifting of an arms
embargo to help it take back control of the country.
(Reporting by Mark John; Additional reporting by James Mackenzie in
Rome; Editing by Andrew Callus and Crispian Balmer)
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