TRIPOLI: Libyan leader Khalifa Haftar has called for a unified government to conduct long-delayed polls, in place of the rival administrations presently struggling for control.
Libya has been torn by a decade of conflict since a NATO-sponsored revolt toppled the government of Muammar Qaddafi in 2011, with a countless of militias founding opposing alliances backed by foreign powers. The African country remains split between the interim government and Haftar.
Haftar Calls for Unified Government to Conduct Elections
Presidential and parliamentary polls were due to be conducted in December 2021 but were never held as differences continued on key issues.
Last week, the two sides agreed on the legal measures to organize the elections after talks in Morocco, but stopped short of inking an agreement, hinting that some differences remain.
Among the contested issues are the candidacy of dual citizens and soldiers. Haftar also hold American citizenship, and his critics accuse him of seeking to reinstate military dictatorship in the country.
The UN has said it would work to resolve differences between the two sides.
On Friday, Haftar’s self-styled Libyan National Army asked the rival administrations “to end the political divisions and set up a new unified government tasked with organizing polls in the country.”
