Libyan Premier to Run for President

Libyan Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibeh. Gregorio Borgia/Pool via REUTERS
Libyan Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibeh. Gregorio Borgia/Pool via REUTERS
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Libyan Premier to Run for President

Libyan Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibeh. Gregorio Borgia/Pool via REUTERS
Libyan Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibeh. Gregorio Borgia/Pool via REUTERS

The head of Libya's national unity government plans to run for president next month, according to a senior official.

Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah and other cabinet members had pledged not to run for president when they were appointed to the Government of National Unity, which replaced two rival administrations after years of war between factions based in the east and west.

Dbeibah "announced his intention to run for the upcoming presidential election," the senior official told Reuters, a day before registration for candidates officially opens.

Libya's rival political institutions remain divided over the election's legal basis, the rules governing candidacy and even the date.

Libya's High National Elections Commission said it would open registration on Monday for candidates in presidential and parliamentary elections that have been mandated by a UN-backed roadmap on Dec. 24.



Stampede Kills Four People, Injures 16 in Umayyad Mosque in Damascus

A crowd gathers outside the Umayyad Mosque as they await updates following a stampede that occurred during Friday prayers in Damascus, Syria, Friday Jan. 10, 2025. (AP)
A crowd gathers outside the Umayyad Mosque as they await updates following a stampede that occurred during Friday prayers in Damascus, Syria, Friday Jan. 10, 2025. (AP)
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Stampede Kills Four People, Injures 16 in Umayyad Mosque in Damascus

A crowd gathers outside the Umayyad Mosque as they await updates following a stampede that occurred during Friday prayers in Damascus, Syria, Friday Jan. 10, 2025. (AP)
A crowd gathers outside the Umayyad Mosque as they await updates following a stampede that occurred during Friday prayers in Damascus, Syria, Friday Jan. 10, 2025. (AP)

Four people were killed and 16 injured in a stampede in the landmark Umayyad Mosque in Damascus on Friday, the Syrian state news agency (SANA) said.

Five children suffered fractures, severe bruises and fainting, the civil defense said in a statement.

Authorities were trying to determine the causes of the incident and will hold those responsible accountable, Damascus Governor Maher Marwan told SANA.

"We are working to take urgent measures to ensure that such incidents are not repeated in public places in the future," SANA quoted him as saying.

Syria's new rulers seized control of Damascus on Dec. 8, forcing President Bashar al-Assad to flee after more than 13 years of civil war and ending his family's decades-long rule.