Head of Libya’s Government of National Unity (GNU) Abdulhamid Dbeibeh stated that he does not oppose meeting with Libyan National Army (LNA) commander Khalifa Haftar, but set “necessary conditions” for that to happen.
In remarks to Bloomberg published on Friday, he said he does not object to meeting Haftar if he “recognizes me as prime minister and defense minister.”
Dbeibah said he only communicated indirectly with Haftar when his term began to resolve matters including prisoner exchanges, but Haftar’s recent speeches “haven’t been encouraging”.
He cited progress toward agreeing the exit of mercenaries. “I won’t say they’ll be out in a month or two,” but they’ll eventually leave, he said, describing a “very significant decrease” in weaponry brought into Libya.
He vowed a landmark December presidential election would go ahead even as foreign meddling poses obstacles to the vote.
“International interventions, as well as the interventions of military systems, may create obstacles to the holding of elections, despite all countries officially” supporting the vote, he remarked.
Moreover, Dbeibeh said he does not oppose the run of Seif al-Islam al-Gaddafi, son of slain longtime ruler Moammar, in the elections.
Seif al-Islam is “a Libyan citizen and the son of an important tribe in Libya, and I have no objection to the candidacy of any citizen who has no legal issues,” said Dbeibeh.
Election rules not yet formalized could in theory bar Gaddafi from running – he is wanted for war crimes by the International Criminal Court. No candidate has put their name forward, said Bloomberg.
Separately, head of the Presidential Council Mohammed al-Menfi held telephone talks with US special envoy to Libya, Richard Norland. They expressed their commitment to holding elections in December to meet the aspirations of the Libyan people and support a stable, united and democratic Libya.
In a series of tweets, the US embassy said Norland and Menfi “called on all parties in Libya to refrain from any mobilization that may be perceived as an escalation that could undermine the implementation of the 23 October 2020 ceasefire agreement.”
Meanwhile, Speaker of the east-based parliament Aguila Saleh accused the GNU of failing to unify state institutions in a way that allows all provinces to take part in governance.
In remarks to Russian media on Thursday, he warned that failure to hold the elections on time may expose the country to division and may once again plunge it in chaos.
He demanded the withdrawal of foreign forces from the country, urging the international community to impose sanctions on Turkey and force it to pull out its troops from Libya.
