Libya PM calls for fresh elections

By Walid Abdullah

TRIPOLI (AA) – Head of Libya’s unity government Fayez Al-Sarraj has renewed his support for any political plan that leads to holding fresh presidential and parliamentary elections in the conflict-ridden country.

Speaking during a meeting with German ambassador to Libya Christian Buck, al-Sarraj hailed the German support for the Libyan unity government, according to a statement issued by his office.

Buck, for his part, underlined his government’s backing for a roadmap unveiled by UN envoy Ghassan Salama for resolving the Libyan conflict.

According to the statement, talks between the two sides tackled bilateral relations and the latest developments in the war-torn country.

Unveiled on the sidelines of last month's UN General Assembly meeting in New York, Salame’s plan consists of three stages: the amendment of the 2015 Skhirat agreement; holding a national dialogue between Libya’s disparate political factions; and holding of a popular referendum on the adoption of a new constitution.

Signed in late 2015 in the Moroccan city of Skhirat, the agreement gave rise to Libya’s current UN-backed unity government.

One year after its signing, however, a rival government in east Libya disowned the agreement, demanding that it be reformulated.

Salame said Monday that Libyan rivals will resume their talks in Tunisia on Saturday with a view to reaching a political agreement.

Libya has remained in a state of turmoil since 2011, when a bloody uprising led to the ouster and death of longtime President Muammar Gaddafi.

In the six years since, the country’s stark political divisions have yielded two rival seats of government -- one in Tobruk and another in Tripoli -- and a plethora of heavily-armed militia groups.