Rival groups in Libya's parliament agree on unification

Libyan Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibah (C) poses for a picture with Foreign Ministers Italian Luigi Di Maio (R) German Heiko Maas (2-R) Libyan Najla al-Mangoush (2-L) and French Jean-Yves Le Drian, in Libya's capital Tripoli, on March 25, 2021. (AFP Photo)

by DAILY SABAH WITH AA

Mar 31, 2021 11:18 am

A Libyan lawmaker revealed on Tuesday that an agreement has been secured to unify the two competing groups in the country's parliament following a meeting in the capital Tripoli.

Fawzi al-Nuwairi, the deputy speaker of the Tobruk-based parliament, told the Libya Alahrar TV network that "the presidency of the Libyan parliament met on Tuesday in Tripoli and agreed to unify the parliament."

Al-Nuwairi, however, did not give further details on the agreement or who had attended the meeting.

Libyan lawmakers failed last December to unify the two legislative bodies and elect a new speaker following their meeting in Gadamis, 600 kilometers (373 miles) west of Tripoli.

The current Libyan parliament is divided between lawmakers in Tripoli headed by Mohammad Siala and lawmakers in Tobruk headed by Aguila Saleh. There are currently no accurate figures on the number of members in each group due to individual resignations and deaths.

On Feb. 5, Libya's rival political groups agreed in United Nations-mediated talks to form an interim unity government to lead the country to elections this December, designating a prime minister, Abdul Hamid Dbeibah, and tasking him with forming a new government.

Libyans hope that it will end years of civil war that have engulfed the country since the ousting and killing of strongman Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.

The conflict in the country was exacerbated when eastern-based putschist Gen. Khalifa Haftar, supported by several countries, including the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Russia and France, conducted a military onslaught to topple the Tripoli-based internationally recognized Government of National Accord (GNA), backed by Turkey and Qatar, for control over the country.

On Oct. 23, 2020, a cease-fire was reached under the auspices of the U.N., which Haftar's militia has since violated from time to time.

Ankara on Tuesday welcomed the political process and progress in Libya and noted that Turkey would continue to provide all manner of support to ensure security, peace and prosperity in the North African nation.