TRIPOLI: Libyan armed groups and officials reached an agreement in Tripoli to secure key infrastructure, the country’s minister for Interior Affairs has announced, after concern from the UN over recent fighting and a crisis surrounding the nation’s central bank.
The African nation of 6.8 million has struggled to recover from years of crisis following the 2011 NATO-backed uprising that overthrew longtime ruler Muammar Qaddafi. It remains divided between a UN-recognized government in Tripoli led by PM Abdulhamid Dbeibah, and a rival set up in the east backed by strongman Khalifa Haftar.
Interior Minister Imad Trabelsi said that in coordination with the Ministry of Defense, they have brought together all the security services of Tripoli and managed to reach a deal to secure the airports and land borders, the headquarters of government (institutions) in the capital city. He said that the armed groups and security services also expressed their immediate willingness to implement the agreement.
He added that they would secure all governmental buildings including that of the Central Bank of Libya within 24 hours.
Earlier, on Tuesday, the acting chief of the UN’s political mission in Libya, Stephanie Koury, told the UNSC that in the past 60-day, the situation in the African country has deteriorated quite fast, quoting recent fighting between armed groups on the peripheries of Tripoli and attempts to forcibly oust Kabir.
The UN mission (UNSMIL) has called on all parties to exercise restraint, expressing deep concerns regarding reports of mobilization of forces in Tripoli, including the threats to use force to address the crisis surrounding the Central Bank of Libya.
The United States embassy also raised the tensions around the country’s central bank on Thursday night, adding any attempt to address matters by force would impact the institution’s integrity and its role in the international financial system.
About two weeks ago, many people, some of them armed, gathered in front of the bank in a bid to force Kabir to quit.
