Libya’s premier-designate names 27-member unity gov’t

TRIPOLI, Libya (AA) - Libya’s Prime Minister-designate Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh has proposed a unity government of 27 members, his office said on Saturday.

The government lineup will be debated by the Tobruk-based House of Representatives (parliament) on Monday.

“The government’s priorities will include improving services, unifying state institutions and ending the transitional period by holding elections,” Dbeibeh’s office said in a statement.

The statement added that the House of Representatives will convene on Monday in the coastal city of Sirte for a vote of confidence on the Cabinet lineup.

On Feb. 5, Libya's rival political groups agreed during UN-mediated talks to form an interim unity government to lead the country to elections this December in which Dbeibeh was designated as prime minister and to form a new government.

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

*Ahmed Asmar in Ankara contributed to this report