(Refiled to add word “delegation” in AbuHamoud’s title in bullet point 5)
By Ahmed Elumami
TRIPOLI, Aug 30 (Reuters) – Representatives of Libya’s rival political parties on Sunday signed an agreement on holding long-delayed national elections within two years to resolve contentious issues over electoral laws and reform the national elections body.
• The political process to resolve more than a decade of conflict in Libya has been stalled since an election scheduled for December 2021 collapsed following disputes over the eligibility of the main candidates.
• Sunday’s signing ceremony was held at the United Nations Support Mission in Libya, UNSMIL, in the Libyan capital Tripoli.
• It followed talks in a smaller format, known as the 4+4, that involved two representatives of each of Libya’s four main institutions: the Government of National Unity, the High Council of State, the House of Representatives and the Libyan National Army.
• Walid Ellafi, state minister of political affairs and communications in the Government of National Unity, said legislative and presidential elections should be held “within a period not exceeding 24 months” under a single executive authority and unified national institutions.
• Shibani AbuHamoud, head of the army’s general command delegation, said the 4+4 would work with UNSMIL “to develop a framework within one month of the signing of the agreement to follow up on all matters related to its implementation”.
• The agreement says that if Libya’s House of Representatives and High Council of State fail to approve the deal within a month, the parties will seek to adopt it nationally as a constitutional document through broad national mechanisms and secure international backing through the U.N. Security Council.
• Libya has had little stability or security since a 2011 NATO-backed uprising.
• It split in 2014 between warring eastern and western factions but there has been little major warfare since a 2020 ceasefire.
• All Libya’s major political players have repeatedly called for elections, but many Libyan people have voiced doubts that they would want a vote that could push most of them from positions of authority.
(Reporting by Muhammad Al Gebaly and Eman Abouhassira; Writing by Ahmed Elumami; editing by Barbara Lewis)
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