UN Mission Welcomes Libya’s ‘Morocco Agreement’, Dbeibah Rejects it

Libyans shop at a market in Tripoli on October 5, 2022. (AFP)
Libyans shop at a market in Tripoli on October 5, 2022. (AFP)
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UN Mission Welcomes Libya’s ‘Morocco Agreement’, Dbeibah Rejects it

Libyans shop at a market in Tripoli on October 5, 2022. (AFP)
Libyans shop at a market in Tripoli on October 5, 2022. (AFP)

The declaration of an agreement in Morocco between head of Libya’s High Council of State Khaled al-Mishri and east-based parliament Speaker Aguila Saleh over the sovereign posts and the formation of a unified government sparked a heated dispute between head of the Government of National Unity (GNU) Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah and Mishri.

Mishri and Saleh agreed on the implementation of the article on sovereign posts, addressed in the Bouznika agreement, before the end of the year. They also agreed to the resumption of dialogue with the aim of holding presidential and parliamentary elections with the agreement of the parliament and High Council of State.

In a Twitter post on Friday, Dbeibah rejected “talk about parallel paths, such as the division of sovereign posts.”

He added that the Libyans “are demanding that all parties respect their commitments towards the elections.”

He reiterated his call on Mishri and Saleh to adopt a “fair constitutional base” that resolves the legal disputes that are impeding the elections.

For his part, Mishri demanded that Dbeibah cease “selling delusions to the people.”

In a tweet, he called on Dbeibah to “carry out his job and cease meddling in affairs that are beyond his specialization and jurisdiction.”

Head of the stability government Fathi Bashagha has yet to comment on the Morocco agreement.

Head of the Presidential Council Mohammed al-Menfi meanwhile, urged Mishri and Saleh to “immediately complete the constitutional base to hold the elections before the end of the year,” local media reported.

He also called on them to commit fully to the roadmap that would ensure the implementation of the political agreement and independence of the judiciary.

Meanwhile, Special Representative of the Secretary General and Head of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya Abdoulaye Bathily said he noted the outcome of the meeting between Mishri and Saleh.

In a tweet, he said he “welcomes the resumption of dialogue between the two leaders and expresses his readiness to discuss the details, modalities and timelines of implementation of their commitments.”

He urged “all Libyans leaders to engage in an inclusive dialogue as the only way to overcome the current deadlock and meet the aspirations of the Libyan people.”



Switzerland Lifts Economic Sanctions on Syria

A drone view shows the Syrian central bank, after the ousting of Syria's Bashar al-Assad, in Damascus, Syria, December 16, 2024. (Reuters)
A drone view shows the Syrian central bank, after the ousting of Syria's Bashar al-Assad, in Damascus, Syria, December 16, 2024. (Reuters)
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Switzerland Lifts Economic Sanctions on Syria

A drone view shows the Syrian central bank, after the ousting of Syria's Bashar al-Assad, in Damascus, Syria, December 16, 2024. (Reuters)
A drone view shows the Syrian central bank, after the ousting of Syria's Bashar al-Assad, in Damascus, Syria, December 16, 2024. (Reuters)

Switzerland said on Friday it will lift a raft of economic sanctions imposed on Syria, including the Middle Eastern country's central bank.

After the toppling of former Syrian president Bashar al-Assad in December 2024, targeted sanctions against individuals and entities linked to the former government will still remain in place, Switzerland's governing Federal Council said.

"The aim of this decision is to promote the country's economic recovery and an inclusive and peaceful political transition," the council said in a statement.

After an initial easing of sanctions in March, Switzerland is now lifting restrictions on the provision of certain financial services, trade in precious metals and the export of luxury goods, the government said.

Some 24 entities including the central bank of Syria have also been removed from the sanctions list, it added.

The announcement follows the EU's decision to lift its economic sanctions on Syria at the end of May after a similar move by the US Treasury Department in the same month.