The UN envoy to Libya, Stephanie Khoury, said that Haftar’s forces’ unilateral moves towards the southwestern parts of Libya prompted forces and formations in the west of the country to mobilize and confirm their readiness to respond to any attack.
In her speech before the Security Council today, Khoury explained that this step caused tensions in western Libya and raised concerns in Algeria.
On July 23, GNA forces moved west, prompting a mobilization by the LNA and among armed groups in the area, Khoury said.
Khoury added that on August 9, violent armed clashes broke out in Tajoura between two armed groups, resulting in civilian deaths and injuries and the destruction of property. Local mediation efforts succeeded in defusing the tension, she said.
She considered that unilateral actions by political and security figures also undermine stability in various ways.
She said that unilateral attempts to dismiss the governor of the Central Bank of Libya are met with counter-attempts to keep him in his position, just as attempts to dismiss Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dabaiba and his government are met with attempts to keep them.
She pointed to the dispute within the Supreme Council regarding the voting paper on the presidency of the Council, urgently calling for a quick resolution of the issue.
Khoury considered the termination of the mandate of the Government of National Unity and the Presidential Council and the transfer of the role of the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, by the parliament itself, a unilateral step.
She said that unilateral measures related to the economic field also contribute to the problem of instability, referring to the MPs’ approval of the Hamad government’s budget.
Regarding the change of the Central Bank Governor, Khoury said that this trend is fueled by the existing perception that the Governor does not act with transparency or fair governance for the East and the West, according to her.
The UN envoy described the closure of the Sharara oil field as a unilateral move as well, noting that there were reports of weapons entering Libya in violation of the arms embargo.
Khoury explained that the mission is communicating with Haftar’s forces regarding individuals who are being arbitrarily detained, in order to review their cases, including some children, confirming that there are reports indicating the continuation of the imposed restrictions, arbitrary arrests, kidnappings, enforced disappearances, and deaths during detention.
Source: Security Council session
2024-08-24 11:14:27