Libya: UN official warns, the informal ceasefire on fighting front is ‘’fragile’’

04 Octobre 2020

Tripoli, Libya, October 4  (Infosplusgabon) – The acting Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General in Libya, Stephanie Williams, has warned that although the UN mission has encouraged stakeholders to continue strengthening the ceasefire in Libya, the deal could collapse at any time.

"Although a cessation of hostilities actually prevailed in the region, in a non-official way, it remains fragile and can collapse at any time," she said in an interview on Sunday in the London newspaper, Al-Sharq Al-Awsat.

Mrs Williams expressed happiness at the Libyan-Libyan security and military negotiations at Hurghada (Egypt), saying that ‘’this is a positive evolution in the domain of security and army".

On 28 and 29 September, the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) sponsored the direct talks on security and military between the delegations of the Libyan National Army, commanded by Marshall Khalifa Haftar, and those of the forces loyal to the Government of National Accord (GNA).

"We are grateful to the participants from both sides for their spirit of responsibility and transparency, which strengthened the mutual confidence and made the talks progress tangibly that ended with a set of important recommendations to be presented later for discussion at meetings of the joint 5+5 military commission which, we hope, will contribute to the conclusion of a permanent ceasefire deal in Libya," added the UN official.

The recommendations from the meeting ‘’included the end of the media escalation campaigns and the hate speeches, their replacement with tolerance and reconciliation and the rejection of violence and terrorism, as well as the acceleration of the release of prisoners for the two camps, the establishment of joint committees in that respect and the opening of communication paths between Libyans".

Mrs Williams, however, said that the violations of the arm embargo on Libya "continued by a certain number of member States who took part in the Berlin Conference on Libya and all parties in Libya", adding that "the process has recently slowed down, but this does not mean it has stopped".

UNSMIL is considering holding a round of inter-Libyan peace talks designed to launch a new transition through the restructuring of a new presidential council and the formation of a national unity government, before the general elections, to be held in March 2021.

FIN/ INFOSPLUSGABON/AZS/GABON2020

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