UN Warns Situation in Libya Could Get Out of Control

UN Warns Situation in Libya Could Get Out of Control
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UN Warns Situation in Libya Could Get Out of Control

UN Warns Situation in Libya Could Get Out of Control

The war in Libya will intensify, broaden and deepen with devastating consequences for the Libyan people, said acting head of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL).

Stephanie Williams called on the international community to prevent Libya from getting out of control.

Briefing the Security Council Tuesday, Williams said via videoconference that there has become “new depths of violence, heartlessness, and impunity.”

“Despite our determined efforts and the Secretary General’s plea for an immediate ceasefire to allow Libyans to respond to the common threat of COVID-19, I regret to report that there has been no lull in the fighting between the Government of National Accord (GNA) forces and General (Khalifa) Haftar’s Libyan National Army.”

Instead, she stressed, fighting has escalated with an unprecedented rate in indirect fire in urban areas and a growing tide of suffering for civilians.

As a result of the intensifying armed hostilities, coupled with the dire socio-economic impact of COVID-19 and including the loss of employment and livelihoods, a million people are now in need of some form of humanitarian assistance, she noted.

“This includes 400,000 internally displaced Libyans, along with 654,000 migrants, refugees and asylum seekers.”

Williams also pointed out that millions of Libyans, and most notably the two million residents of Tripoli, are experiencing a most abnormal and terrifying existence, under almost constant bombardment and frequent water and electricity cuts.

The UN official told members of the Security Council that there is an alarming military build-up as a result of the uninterrupted dispatch by the foreign backers of increasingly sophisticated and lethal weapons, not to mention the recruitment of more mercenaries to both sides of the conflict.

“After their successful bid to retake six cities on the coastal road west of Tripoli in April, GNA forces are now seeking to roll back the LNA’s foothold in southern Tripoli by forcing the redeployment of resources and disrupting their supply lines from the nearby city of Tarhouna,” she stated.

These recent successes, Williams added, have “emboldened” the GNA to show reluctance in reciprocating a unilaterally declared cessation of all military activities, which allowed its forces in early May to seize control of the Wutiya airbase.

“The control of this strategic airbase may trigger further escalation, turning the Libyan conflict into a pure proxy war,” Williams further noted.

The official pointed to the nearly non-stop daily shelling on Tripoli, and in particular Mitiga airport, since April 24.

She once again called for the immediate cessation of attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructure, whilst calling on the GNA to restore the civilian nature of Mitiga airport.

“I am concerned about GNA UAV attacks over the past two months on vehicles travelling between Mazdah and Tarhouna as well as in Bani Walid, which caused collateral damage to vehicles carrying non-combat related items like food, goods, and fuel and resulted in civilian casualties.”

“Such attacks violate International Humanitarian Law and may amount to war crimes,” she stressed.



Egypt Needs to Import $1.18 Billion in Fuel to End Power Cuts, PM Says

The moon is seen after the day of Strawberry Moon over old houses in Cairo, Egypt, June 22, 2024. (Reuters)
The moon is seen after the day of Strawberry Moon over old houses in Cairo, Egypt, June 22, 2024. (Reuters)
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Egypt Needs to Import $1.18 Billion in Fuel to End Power Cuts, PM Says

The moon is seen after the day of Strawberry Moon over old houses in Cairo, Egypt, June 22, 2024. (Reuters)
The moon is seen after the day of Strawberry Moon over old houses in Cairo, Egypt, June 22, 2024. (Reuters)

Egypt needs to import around $1.18 billion worth of mazut fuel oil and natural gas to end persistent power cuts exacerbated by consecutive heat waves, its Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly said in a televised address on Tuesday.

It hopes the shipments will arrive in full around the third week of July, by which point the government aims to stop cutting power during the remaining summer months, he added.

It has already started contracting for 300,000 tons of mazut worth $180 million to boost its strategic reserves which are expected to arrive early next week.

Egypt's government on Monday extended daily power cuts to three hours from two hours previously in response to a surge in domestic electricity consumption during the latest heat wave.

These three-hour cuts will continue until the end of June, before returning to two hours in the first half of July with the aim of stopping completely for the rest of the summer, Madbouly said on Tuesday.

Egyptian social media has lit up with complaints about the impact of the blackouts, with some saying they have been forced to purchase private power generators.

The problem has particularly affected teenagers preparing for the crucial high school certificate, with some posting about students studying by candlelight and others in coffee shops.

A wedding hall owner in the coastal city of Port Said said he would turn one of his ballrooms into a study hall.

Since July last year, load shedding linked to falling gas production, rising demand and a shortage of foreign currency has led to scheduled two-hour daily power cuts in most areas.

"We had said that we planned to end load shedding by the end of 2024... we do not have a power generation problem or a network problem, we are unable to provide fuel," Madbouly said on Tuesday.

"With the increase in consumption related to the major development and population increase, there has been a lot of pressure on our dollar resources," he added.

He said production in a neighboring country's gas field had come to a full halt for 12 hours leading to an interruption in the supply, without naming the country or the gas field.

Egypt's Abu Qir Fertilizers said on Tuesday three of its plants had halted production because their supply of natural gas was cut.