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UNITED NATIONS The U.N. Security Council called the establishment of a transitional government in Libya an important milestone Tuesday and urged all countries with foreign forces and mercenaries in the North African nation to withdraw them without further delay as the divided North African nation moves toward elections in December.

The Libya conflict, which began with a NATO-backed uprising in 2011 that toppled longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi and split the country, has been one of the most intractable remnants of the Arab spring a decade ago.

The agreement on a three-member interim presidency council and prime minister Friday has been seen as a major if uncertain step toward unifying Libya, which has rival governments in the east and west, each side backed by an array of local militias as well as regional and foreign powers.

The council called on the interim executives to agree swiftly on the formation of a new, inclusive government, make preparations for presidential and parliamentary elections planned for Dec. 24, improve services for the Libyan people, and launch a comprehensive national reconciliation process.

The presidential statement, approved by all 15 council members, is a step below a resolution and becomes part of the councils record.

The latest upsurge in violence in Libya began in April 2019 when the commander of eastern-based forces, Khalifa Hifter, backed by Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, launched an offensive seeking to capture the capital, Tripoli. His campaign collapsed after Turkey stepped up its military support for the U.N.-supported government in Tripoli and the west with hundreds of troops and thousands of Syrian mercenaries.

This led to a cease-fire agreement in October that called for the withdrawal of all foreign forces and mercenaries in three months and adherence to a U.N. arms embargo, provisions which have not been met.

Security Council members called on all parties to implement the cease-fire agreement in full, to quickly withdraw foreign forces and mercenaries, and fully comply with the arms embargo.

Last Thursday, the council requested Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to swiftly deploy an advance team to Libya as a first step to sending monitors to observe the cease-fire between the warring parties.

Guterres recommended in late December that international monitors be sent under a U.N. umbrella to observe the cease-fire from a base in the strategic city of Sirte, the gateway to Libyas major oil fields and export terminals. He said an advance team should be sent to Tripoli as a first step to provide the foundations for a scalable United Nations cease-fire monitoring mechanism based in Sirte.

The council statement adopted Tuesday underlines the importance of a credible and effective Libyan-led cease-fire monitoring mechanism under U.N. auspices and welcomes the swift deployment of an advance team.

The Security Council looks forward to receiving proposals on the tasks and scale of the cease-fire monitoring mechanism from the secretary-general, the presidential statement said.

The council thanked American diplomat Stephanie Williams, the former acting U.N. special envoy for Libya, for her role in getting the Libyan rivals to agree to the cease-fire, December elections and the transitional government.

Former Slovak foreign minister Jan Kubis, a veteran U.N. diplomat, took over Monday as the U.N. special representative for Libya. His office said he has spoken with key players in the east and west, the president-designate of the presidency council and the prime minister-designate.

The Security Council reaffirmed its strong commitment to the U.N.-facilitated Libyan-led and Libyan-owned political process and to the sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity and national unity of Libya. Kubis pledged to build on the momentum generated by positive developments achieved in the past months.

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UN urges foreign fighters and mercenaries to leave Libya - Seymour Tribune

Newly designated Libyan Prime Minister Abdel-Hamid Dbeiba promised to submit a proposed cabinet team to the Libyan House of Representatives (HoR) for approval as soon as possible this week, so that the new government could get to work on its heavy agenda.

The HoR has to shoulder many responsibilities under the UN-sponsored roadmap to national reconciliation in Libya. However, despite initiatives backed by a significant number of MPs, it has not yet been able to convene as a unified body due to the continued polarisation in the country. There is still a legislature based in Tobruk in eastern Libya, while a large number of dissident MPs are also based in the west.

Two HoR consultative meetings convened simultaneously on 15 February, one in Tobruk with HoR Speaker Aguila Saleh presiding, and the other in the western city of Sabratha chaired by Abu Bakr Baera, a MP from Benghazi, in his capacity as the parliaments eldest member.

Prior to this there were attempts to persuade MPs to meet together for purposes on which they all agree, despite how far apart they remain on other issues. The main purpose was to discuss arrangements for a vote of confidence in a new national-unity government.

A HoR spokesman made the first attempt, with an invitation to MPs to visit Tobruk and meet to discuss the arrangements. The second attempt was an invitation sent out by the western-based camp headed by business magnate Mohamed Al-Raed, a MP for Misrata, to convene in Sabratha and reorganise the divided House.

That two separate HoR sessions had to be held in the east and the west is indicative of how deep the gulf is between the two camps. These need to come together to ensure that the forthcoming government does not suffer the legitimacy crisis that plagued the former Government of National Accord (GNA).

In his speech to the MPs who met in Tobruk on Monday, HoR Speaker Saleh said that he had launched his peace initiative in April 2020 on certain foundations that include reactivating the political process, separating its political, military, economic and constitutional tracks, halting the warfare, and launching a political dialogue aimed at attaining a political settlement despite how some on our side saw this as a disappointment and a renunciation of faith, while others on the opposite side saw it as an awakening that came too late.

Saleh stressed that his initiative was inspired firstly, by necessity, and, secondly, by the outputs of the Berlin Conference that led to the Cairo Declaration.

The Cairo Declaration, launched by Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi on 20 June last year, was instrumental in bringing a halt to the fighting in Libya. As Saleh put it, it was a necessary step to avert the perpetuation of the conflict... because Tripoli had not been waiting for us, as we had imagined... and even the international community feared the costs of an invasion of the capital.

In this rare criticism of the 14-month military operation that leader of the Libyan National Army (LNA) Khalifa Haftar launched in April 2019 with the aim of liberating Tripoli from the control of radical militias, Saleh added that the tendentious media succeeded in transforming [the campaign] into a civil war between the two Libyan regions of Cyrenaica and Tripolitania.

After the meeting in Tobruk, HoR Spokesman Abdullah Belheeg told reporters that the participants had agreed that a session on a vote for the new cabinet could be held in Sirte on the approval of the 5+5 Joint Military Commission (JMC). They also held that the new government should begin work in the city and that the new government must be inclusive so as not to marginalise any of Libyas three regions or any urban centres within them.

They urged action to remove all foreign fighters from Libya and called for the implementation of a development project for the city of Tobruk as a way of paying tribute to it for hosting the HoR after 2014. They also voted to revoke a resolution to rescind the membership of the 36 MPs whom Saleh had wanted dismissed and referred to the public prosecution for investigation.

The MPs meeting in Sabratha also committed to finding the means necessary to hold a vote of confidence in a new national-unity government. Following through on their meeting in Ghadames last month, they agreed on the need to restructure the HoR so as to better enable it to undertake its responsibilities in accordance with the roadmap for the new interim phase.

In the light of the Covid-19 pandemic and other circumstances, they agreed to use Zoom to allow MPs to participate in parliamentary debates and voting sessions and to form a communications team tasked with contacting other MPs in order to unify efforts and attain the necessary quorum for tomorrows session, according to a joint statement released by the MPs.

More than 30 MPs attended the session in Tobruk and around 65 attended the session in Sabratha, of whom 17 were from the east, according to Libyan MPs who attended them.

Differences between the rival camps are now focused on immediate priorities. HoR Speaker Saleh believes that the first priority should be the vote of confidence in the new government and then the question of restructuring the legislature.

In his April initiative, he proposed that the internal restructuring process should include the election of a new spokesperson, specifically from the southern region of Fezzan. He also wanted the session on the vote of confidence to be held in Tobruk or Benghazi, where the HoR is headquartered under the constitution. But he has indicated that he will defer to the 5+5 JMC, if it determines that it would be better to hold the session in Sirte.

Saleh, whose initiative calls for him to step down as HoR speaker, has served as speaker since the House first convened in August 2014. He has been frequently criticised for controlling the agenda and throwing spanners into the decision-making process. However, he has always claimed that under his tenure the legislature has done a good job, and lawmakers have enshrined the principle of the three regions and their rights to equitable shares of national wealth and political power.

Salehs adversaries are determined to hold the session in a city outside his control to circumvent his pressure and evasion tactics, however. This is why they want a new speaker elected first, as agreed on in Ghadames. According to Libyan news reports, some MPs at the meeting in Sabratha said they had received threats warning them against proceeding with steps to remove Saleh.

As of Monday evening, it was not clear what the participants had resolved, though it was reported that some MPs had tried to promote a compromise solution that involved having the 5+5 JMC determine the venue for the joint session for a vote on Dbeibas slate of ministers.

On the eve of the HoR sessions, Dbeiba said that he was committed to forming a government within the stipulated 21-day period and that his team had begun to review the CVs of candidates for various ministerial portfolios. He did not clarify how large a cabinet he had in mind.

Western governments have urged a smaller cabinet, while domestic political forces expect an expanded one. The latter also appears to be the view of French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian who in a recent discussion with new UN Special Envoy for Libya Jn Kubi emphasised the importance of the swift formation and investiture of an inclusive, representative government.

In another development, the new president of the three-member Libyan Presidency Council, Mohamed Mnefi, arrived in Tripoli on Tuesday over a week after his appointment to the post and following a visit to Tobruk. According to sources, he plans to visit other cities in Tripolitania before heading south to Fezzan, thereby demonstrating his determination to advance the process of national reconciliation.

On Wednesday, Libyans celebrated the tenth anniversary of the 17 February Revolution that overthrew the rule of former leader Muammar Qaddafi. Celebrations this year took place in an atmosphere of relative calm, thanks to the UN-brokered ceasefire that continues to hold four months after it was signed in Geneva.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 18 February, 2021 edition ofAl-Ahram Weekly

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New Libyan government in the making - World - Al-Ahram Weekly - Ahram Online

The newly elected Prime Minister, Abdul-Hamid Dbeibah, said he was ready to cooperate with all state institutions in Libya in order to preserve national sovereignty and keep out negative foreign intervention.

Dbeibah told the High Council of State (HCS) Tuesday that the new interim government would work on establishing consultations with the HCS and House of Representatives as well as the Presidential Council and 5+5 Joint Military Commission so that all Libyans can sense security.

Dbeibah said he had started outlining the new government that should work on and abide by the roadmap commitments of the Libyan Political Dialogue Forum.

He reiterated the importance of the general elections in December, saying to hold elections on time, some elements that had been burdening Libyans must be resolved, and reiterating that national reconciliation is very significant in reaching the targeted elections.

"The briefing at the HCS was part of consultations with all authorities. We hope this positive consultation helps boost chances of stability." Dbeibah wrote on Twitter.

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Dbeibah says to form new government after consulting with Libya's state institutions - The Libya Observer

Libya's weak new government needs to strike a deal with strongman Haftar to stay afloat.

A businessman with Gaddafi regime ties, Abdelhamid Debaiba defied the odds when a UN-led dialogue chose him as prime minister earlier this month, despite French and Egyptian backing for a rival list led by the east Libyan parliament speaker Aguileh Saleh and west Libyan interior minister Fathi Bashagha. One powerbroker, however, breathed a sigh of relief. Khalifa Haftar, the military commander who launched a devastating war on Tripoli in 2019 only to be defeated and increasingly marginalised, was back in the saddle.

Haftars life long ambition to take control of the country had ended embarrassingly, with his troops fleeing from Tripoli after weeks of Turkish drone strikes in May 2020. Russia and Egypt, which had both backed his offensive, pushed forward Haftars grudging ally Saleh as the main representative in the east. Haftar had unsuccessfully tried to sideline Saleh just a few months before the end of the war by assuming overall political command of the east.

READ MORE Libya: After five years at the helm, PM Sarraj having trouble letting go

Instead, he was summoned to Cairo with Saleh in June 2020 to endorse a ceasefire and political initiative by the parliament speaker. Back in his headquarters in Rajma, Haftar stewed as Saleh took the lead and floundered about for a response. In one meeting with Russian officials that left them in shock, Haftar threatened to launch another offensive, this time targeting Misrata, officials briefed on the encounter told The Africa Report.

With Salehs loss, and the victory of a relatively weak president and prime minister known for striking opportunistic deals and who will need Haftars support to succeed, the field marshal now finds himself kingmaker again.

73 delegates cast their ballots in the the dialogue to elect a new temporary unity government that would replace the internationally recognised one in the west, and the Haftar-aligned prime minister in the east, until elections in December 2021. The delegates representing Haftar were instructed to cast their ballots for Debaiba when his list and Salehs made it to the second round of voting, says Mohamed Eljarh, a Libya expert and head of the Libya Outlook for Research and Consulting think tank.

READ MORE Libya: How Colonel Gaddafi continues to haunt the living

Salehs list, in which he was the candidate for president while Bashagha contended for the premiership, narrowly lost by five votes. The combination of the two attracted opposition from vested interests in Tripoli and western Libya that opposed the interior ministers security reform agenda that targeted powerful militias, and Salehs role in supporting the war on the capital. Haftar and his supporters, meanwhile, feared to be further sidelined.

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A Bashagha list represented an existential threat to the armed groups in Tripoli and to Haftar. One of the reasons it was an existential threat to Haftar was widespread international consensus (supporting the Bashagha-Saleh) list, and because Haftar was already being sidelined by the fact that Aguileh Saleh became the primary interlocutor for the east since the end of the war, says Eljarh.

Haftar is really really content with the result, he adds.

The result is an executive that perhaps never expected to win and now finds itself bound to strike deals to stay afloat. Debaiba, who like Bashagha hails from the influential western city of Misrata, had overpromised positions to supporters if he won and now finds himself caught between fulfilling those pledges and international pressure to appoint a small, technocratic government. The president on his list, Mohammed Menfi, is from the east, but is not close to Haftars Libyan National Army.

The situation is very much in flux, says the International Crisis Groups Claudia Gazzini. There is on paper this new proposed executive [that] would appear unsatisfactory for Haftar but there are also signs that conversations are taking place and a more transactional relationship could develop between the nominated prime minister and the LNA, she says.

READ MORE US: Post-Trump vision for the Maghreb

I think (Haftar) can live better with this. Although Aguileh Saleh is an LNA supporter, and he as president of the House of Representatives crowned Haftar as commander of the armed forces, in the last months there hasnt been a good rapport between them, and some people in Haftars circle were worried that Aguileh if empowered would pull the carpet from under Haftar, says Gazzini.

The priority now for Haftar would be to maintain his position in charge of the LNA while securing allies into some of the new governments most important posts, including the defence and finance ministers. Seen as an increasingly irrelevant and troublesome interlocutor even by his foreign allies, Haftar may now get his way again.

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With Libyas surprise vote result, a defeated Haftar is back in the saddle - The Africa Report

During the past week Libyan coast guards intercepted more than 1,500 Europe-bound migrants, according to a non-governmental organization. UN officials and human rights advocates have denounced the return of migrants to Libya because they face violence and arbitrary detention.

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) confirmed Wednesday that around 1,500 people had been picked up from boats off Libyas western shores within one week.

"The Libyan coastguard has conducted several rescue operations from a week ago until (Wednesday) and rescued about 1,500 people," Adel al-Idrissi from the IRC told the news agency AFP.

Libyan authorities said that on Wednesday (February 10) alone, two boats with a total of 240 Africanmigrants on board were intercepted off the port city of Al-Khums.

The UN migration agency IOM in Libya confirmed on Twitter that over 200 migrants had been intercepted and returned to Libya on Wednesday.

Images of migrants being returned to Al-Khums show women and children.

Some of the migrants picked up by coast guards on Wednesday reportedly resisted getting on the coast guard vessel. "We encountered difficulties in getting the (migrantsfrom the first boat) on board," but the second group "showed less opposition," Lieutenant-Colonel Mohammed Abdel Aali told AFP.

Migrantsintercepted by Libyan authorities off the North African coast often object to being returned to the country and prefer to wait for humanitarian rescue ships.

"Men, women and children taken back to Libya against their will," the head of Spanish rescue organization Open Arms, Oscar Camps, said on Twitter on Wednesday. Their rescue ship Astral was on its way to the location of a distress call, he said. But when the ship arrived, the migrants had already been picked up by the Libyan patrol boat Fezzan V658, Camps tweeted in a thread.

The UN migration agency IOM in its most recent update recorded 1,487 returns to Libya between February 2-8. Since the start of the year, the IOM recorded 1,956 returns, among them 185 women and 124 minors.

International agencies and rights groups have repeatedly denounced the return of migrants to Libya, where many face violence and arbitrary detention.

Reports of rape, torture, forced labor and murder have all emerged from Libyan detention camps. Images smuggled out of these facilities show migrants detained under inhumane conditions.

Because of this, rights group have called on European countries to stop their collaboration with Libyan authorities on migration issues -- in particular, they want Italy and the EU to stop financing Libya's coast guard.

Despite its notorious reputation, Libya remains an important transit point formigrantsfleeing instability in other parts of Africa, the Middle East or south-eastern Asia who hope to reach Europe.

The Mediterranean crossing remains one of the deadliest migration routes in the world. In January of this year, a shipwreck off Libya claimed more than 40 lives. IOM says that more than 1,200migrantsand asylum seekers died while crossing the Mediterranean in 2020.

With AFP

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More than 1500 migrants intercepted off Libya and returned - InfoMigrants