UPDATE - Turkish president receives Libyan PM in Istanbul

UPDATES WITH END OF MEETINGS, CHANGES DECK

By Berk Ozkan

ISTANBUL (AA) - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Sunday received Fayez al-Sarraj, the head of Libya's UN-recognized government, in Istanbul.

The closed-door meeting, which started at 7.00 p.m. local time (1600 GMT) at the Vahdettin Mansion, lasted nearly an hour.

Later, the two sides' delegations also met for an hour and 30 minutes.

The meeting was also attended on the Turkish side by Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, Interior Ministry Suleyman Soylu, Treasury and Finance Minister Berat Albayrak, National Defense Minister Hulusi Akar, Communications Director Fahrettin Altun and presidential spokesperson Ibrahim Kalin.

Libya has been torn by civil war since the ouster of late ruler Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.

The Government of National Accord (GNA) was founded in 2015 under a UN-led agreement. But, efforts for a long-term political settlement have failed due to a military offensive by forces loyal to renegade general Khalifa Haftar, who is backed by Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Russia.

Diplomatic efforts have been underway in recent weeks to resolve the Libyan conflict following victories made by the Libyan Army against the militias of Haftar.