Libya urges Arabs to back UN efforts for holding stalled elections

By Walid Abdullah

TRIPOLI, Libya (AA) – Libyan Foreign Minister Najla Al-Mangoush on Sunday called for Arab support to UN efforts for holding the country’s stalled elections.

The call was made at the opening of a meeting of Arab foreign ministers in the Libyan capital Tripoli. UN envoy Abdoulaye Bathily took part in the meeting.

“Libya insists on practicing its full rights in the Arab League,” Al-Mangoush said, rejecting what she called “politicization of the work rules” in the pan-Arab league.

The Libyan diplomat called on the Arab League to support efforts aimed at activating the role of the UN mission in Libya “to create a favorable atmosphere for holding the elections and ending the transitional periods peacefully.”

Sunday’s meeting was attended by a number of Arab countries, including Algeria, Tunisia and Qatar. Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul-Gheit were not present.

Last week, Libya’s Parliament Speaker Aguila Saleh said the country’s stalled elections will be held before November after an agreement with the Tripoli-based High Council of State.

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 last year when the Libyan parliament appointed a new government led by former Interior Minister Fathi Bashagha, but the head of the Tripoli-based government, Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh, said he will cede authority only to a government that comes through an "elected parliament," raising fears that Libya could slip back into a civil war.

* Writing by Ahmed Asmar