Libya's GNU, LNA Discuss Means to Unify Military

LNA Chief of General Staff Lieutenant General Abdulrazek al-Nadoori meets with GNU Chief of Staff Mohammed al-Haddad in Sirte. (LNA press office)
LNA Chief of General Staff Lieutenant General Abdulrazek al-Nadoori meets with GNU Chief of Staff Mohammed al-Haddad in Sirte. (LNA press office)
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Libya's GNU, LNA Discuss Means to Unify Military

LNA Chief of General Staff Lieutenant General Abdulrazek al-Nadoori meets with GNU Chief of Staff Mohammed al-Haddad in Sirte. (LNA press office)
LNA Chief of General Staff Lieutenant General Abdulrazek al-Nadoori meets with GNU Chief of Staff Mohammed al-Haddad in Sirte. (LNA press office)

Libyan National Army (LNA) Chief of General Staff Lieutenant General Abdulrazek al-Nadoori held talks on Saturday with Mohammed al-Haddad, the Government of National Unity (GNU) chief of staff, on efforts to unify the military.

Member of the 5+5 joint military committee, Khairy al-Tamimi said the meeting, which was held in Sirte city, was aimed at building trust between the two sides.

Efforts to unify the military institution "are moving in the right direction," he added.

Meanwhile, the High National Election Commission denied reports that it had declared "force majeure", meaning the cancellation of the upcoming elections.

A statement had been published on the commission's official website, claiming the polls have been canceled.

The commission said the website was hacked and the statement has since been taken down.

The statement had condemned what it said was the threat of one presidential candidate, who holds dual nationality, to use force against the commission, which prompted it to declare "force majeure".

Meanwhile, Stephanie Williams, adviser to the UN chief on Libya, stressed on Friday the need to respect the will of 2.8 million Libyans who had registered to vote in the elections.

The diplomat had held talks with head of the High Council of State Khalid al-Mishri in Tripoli.

In a tweet, she said she highlighted the calendar set by the Libyan Political Dialogue Forum roadmap and "called for urgent and serious efforts to end Libya's already too long transitional period with free, fair and credible elections."

She added that talks with Mishri also "outlined his vision to work towards national elections via a referendum on the constitution in a timely manner."



Four Bodies, Four Survivors Recovered from Egypt Red Sea Sinking, Says Governor

Sea Story had no technical problems, obtained all required permits prior to the trip, and was last checked for naval safety in March. (Red Sea Governorate on Facebook)
Sea Story had no technical problems, obtained all required permits prior to the trip, and was last checked for naval safety in March. (Red Sea Governorate on Facebook)
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Four Bodies, Four Survivors Recovered from Egypt Red Sea Sinking, Says Governor

Sea Story had no technical problems, obtained all required permits prior to the trip, and was last checked for naval safety in March. (Red Sea Governorate on Facebook)
Sea Story had no technical problems, obtained all required permits prior to the trip, and was last checked for naval safety in March. (Red Sea Governorate on Facebook)

Rescuers on Tuesday recovered four bodies and four survivors a day after a diving boat capsized off Egypt's eastern coast, Red Sea governor Amr Hanafi said, with eight people still missing.

Among the survivors were two Belgians, one Swiss national and one Egyptian, the governor said, bringing the total number of survivors from the vessel to 32. The four dead have not yet been identified and eight people remain missing.

"Rescue operations are ongoing today, supported by a military helicopter and a frigate in addition to multiple divers," Hanafi told AFP.

The vessel was carrying 31 tourists of multiple nationalities and a 13-member crew when it was hit by a large wave early on Monday, leading it to capsize near Marsa Alam in southeastern Egypt. The "Sea Story" had embarked on a multi-day diving trip on Sunday and had been due to dock on Friday at the town of Hurghada, 200 kilometres (124 miles) north.

The governor on Monday said the boat had sunk within 5-7 minutes of its impact with the wave, leaving some passengers -- among them European, Chinese and American tourists -- unable to escape their cabins in time.

- Survivors -

Rescuers from the military and a passing tourist boat had pulled 28 people from the waters on Monday. According to a source at a hospital in Marsa Alam, six tourists and three Egyptians were admitted with minor injuries and discharged on Monday.

The tourists included "two Germans, two Britons, one Spaniard and one Swiss national," the hospital administrator told AFP, requesting anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.

According to the governor's office, the boat was carrying tourists from Belgium, Britain, China, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Poland, Slovakia, Spain, Switzerland and the United States.

Among the missing are two Polish and two Finnish tourists, according to both countries' foreign ministries.

Authorities have said the vessel was fully licensed and had passed all its inspection checks. A preliminary investigation showed no technical fault.

The Marsa Alam area experienced at least two similar boat accidents earlier this year but there were no fatalities. The Red Sea coast is a major tourist destination in Egypt, a country of 107 million that is in the grip of a serious economic crisis.

Nationally, the tourism sector employs two million people and generates more than 10 percent of its GDP.

Dozens of dive boats crisscross between Red Sea coral reefs and islands off Egypt's eastern coast every day, where safety regulations are robust but unevenly enforced.

Earlier this month, 30 people were rescued from a sinking dive boat near the Red Sea's Daedalus reef. In June, two dozen French tourists were evacuated safely before their boat sank in a similar accident.

Last year, three British tourists died when a fire broke out on their yacht.