Qatar backs peaceful solutions to Libyan crisis

By Ahmed Youssef
DOHA, Qatar (AA) – Qatar on Monday reiterated support to reaching a peaceful solution to the Libyan crisis.

Qatari Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani held talks in the capital Doha with Libyan Parliament Speaker Aguila Saleh.

Qatar supports "all peaceful solutions that preserve Libya's unity and stability," bin Abdulrahman said on Twitter.

He said his talks with Saleh took up aspects of developing and strengthening bilateral relations as well as the latest developments in Libya.

On Sunday, Saleh met with Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani to discuss ways of bolstering cooperation between the two sides.

Salah also met with Speaker of the Qatari Shura Council, Hassan bin Abdullah, where they discussed the latest Libyan developments.

Last week, head of the Tripoli-based National Unity Government, Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh, met with the Qatari ruler in Doha to discuss efforts aimed at holding elections in Libya.

In recent years, the Libyan Parliament accused Qatar of supporting armed groups opposed to the East Libya-based assembly, an accusation denied by Doha.

Oil-rich Libya has remained in turmoil since 2011 when longtime ruler Muammar Gaddafi was ousted after four decades in power.

The situation has worsened since March when the Libyan Parliament appointed a new government led by former Interior Minister Fathi Bashagha. Dbeibeh, for his part, insists he will only cede authority to a government that comes through an "elected parliament," raising fears that Libya could slip back into a civil war.

*Ikram Imane Kouachi contributed to this report