Abstract
<jats:p>This article examines the interrelation between various international, transnational, and cross-border dimen-sions of intrastate armed conflict using the case of the Libyan crises since 2011. It outlines the conceptual dis-tinctions between these dimensions of conflict dynamics, including: the intervention of external state-based actors (international dimension); the role of transnational networks of non-state actors (extremist groups, tribal alliances, illicit smuggling networks); and the cross-border diffusion of instability into neighboring countries. Based on the case study method, the article analyzes the mechanisms of the conflict’s “internationalization”, including foreign interventions, regional spillovers of violence and its consequences, the movement of merce-naries and weapons, as well as the feedback effects of these processes on conflict escalation. The study ar-gues that the combination of these dimensions forms a systemic pattern: they generate mutually reinforcing (positive) and, to a lesser extent, balancing (countervailing, negative) feedback loops, which drive a high level of regional instability. These findings are of significant importance for understanding the systemic interlinkage of such factors in the context of efforts by international actors to contain and resolve regional conflicts.</jats:p>