Fayez al-Sarraj welcomes rejection of military regime by people of southern Libya

03 Mai 2020

Tripoli, Libya, May 3 (Infosplusgabon) - The Head of Libya's  Government of National Accord (GNA), Fayez al-Sarraj, has welcomed the "honourable position announced in the south, rejecting military rule and adherence to legitimacy and a democratic civil state", in reaction to the announcement by Marshal Khalifa Haftar of a "Libyan-granted mandate" to govern the country.

Mr. Al- Sarraj recalled in a statement published Saturday on the Presidential Council website, "what they (southerners) have expressed in their various statements in terms of condemnation of the aggression against Tripoli ... and their solidarity with the inhabitants of Libyan cities and regions who are exposed daily to attacks and violations".

"They are still the holders of wisdom and people of magnificence and peace, and they are the real guarantor of the restoration of security and stability throughout the country," Mr. Al-Sarraj stressed.

He added that "if there is an imperfection in our beloved South, then we must remedy it together, and everyone knows that the conditions in the South were a priority in our programmes and were at the heart of economic reforms and reconstruction projects, and exceptional financial provisions were put in place to develop the different regions of the South through the communes according to available resources".

He lamented that "the aggression has set us back and negatively affected our plans and projects not only in the south but also in the different regions of the country".

The Chairman of the Presidential Council stressed: "We must now work together and hand in hand, to reactivate our efforts and consolidate the social scale between the social and cultural components and the different cities", adding, "we hope that positive positions will prevail in all regions and components in all parts of the country so that we are all on the side of one homeland, where the values of citizenship, freedom, and equality prevail within the framework of a democratic civil state".

Activists and notables from the city of Sebha (800 km south of Tripoli) affirmed in a joint statement called Revolutionary of February 17 their adherence to the Political Agreement signed in the Moroccan city of Skhirat in 2015, and the three institutions that emerged from it: the Parliament, the Council of State and the Presidential Council, as a reference for the political solution in Libya.

The statement reaffirmed the support of activists and notables for the legitimacy of the internationally recognized GNA led by Fayez al-Sarraj and condemned "the indiscriminate bombing with all kinds of weapons against civilians in Tripoli and the destruction of the capital's infrastructure", such as field hospitals and emergency services.

The head of the Libyan National Army announced the abandonment of the Libyan political agreement which he accuses of being the cause of divisions in the country.

But this announcement was widely rejected both locally and abroad, considering that the political agreement is the only legal basis for the current institutions in the country.

FIN/ INFOSPLUSGABON/TYG/GABON2020

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