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Civil war in Libya: Government in Tripoli announces ceasefire

A civil war has been raging in Libya since 2011. Now the internationally recognized government in Tripoli has announced a new ceasefire. The camp around rival General Haftar also spoke out in favor of this.

After years of fighting, the opposing sides in Libya have announced a ceasefire and upcoming elections. The unity government in Tripoli in the west of the country and the rival parliament in the east of Libya announced this in separate statements.

Prime Minister Fajes al-Sarraj announced the agreement for the UN-recognized unity government in Tripoli. The armed forces have been instructed to stop all fighting across Libya. In addition, a demilitarized zone is to be set up in the strategically important city of Sirte on the Mediterranean Sea and a political dialogue is to be initiated.

Agila Saleh, the chairman of the parliament allied with the influential General Khalifa Haftar in eastern Libya, also issued a statement of his own. He also called for an immediate ceasefire in the country. The ceasefire blocks the way for any foreign military intervention in the country and leads to the withdrawal of mercenaries and the disbandment of militias, the statement released by the Libyan UN mission said.

Civil war has raged in Libya since the overthrow of long-term ruler Muammar al-Gaddafi in 2011. The Sarraj government is fighting the Haftar forces. All diplomatic efforts to resolve the conflict have so far failed. Even earlier truces failed to calm the situation.

UN welcome announcement

The UN-Libya mediator Stephanie Williams welcomed the announcement and spoke of an agreement on both sides. There is hope that all foreign forces will withdraw from the country.

A spokeswoman for the Foreign Office in Berlin said that not all details were known yet. But that could be an important step towards resolving the conflict. Federal Foreign Minister Heiko Maas recently campaigned in Tripoli for a demilitarized zone around the embattled city of Sirte and a fair distribution of the country’s oil revenues in order to end the conflict.

Both sides in Libya are allied with militias. Other countries are also involved in the conflict: The Sarraj government is supported in the conflict by Turkish troops, among others. Haftar is receiving aid from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Egypt and Saudi Arabia.

Deutschlandfunk reported on this topic on August 21, 2020 at 2:00 p.m.




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