PH
The United Nation’s Mission to Libya has announced the start of political talks which are expected to pave the way for elections.
The virtual meetings for what will be called the Libyan Political Dialogue Forum will bring together 75 participants from across the country’s regions, including ethnic, political, and tribal representatives.
There will be two stages in the political dialogue, which is being mediated by the UN mission.
The virtual meetings which start on Monday will lead to face-to-face talks due to be held in the Tunisian capital, Tunis, on 9 November.
The aim, according to the UN, is to build a consensus around what a new unified Libyan government will look like, and to pave the way for elections to be held as soon as possible.
In a statement, the UN’s political mission also said it hoped Libyan Prime Minister Fayez El Sarraj would remain in power until the dialogue forum decides the way forward.
Last month, the Libyan prime minister said he would “hand-over” power to his replacement by the end of October at the latest.
This plan now seems unlikely to materialise given the timeline of the political negotiations.
The negotiations come after a “permanent” ceasefire deal was signed in Geneva on Friday between Libya’s military rivals.
