UN plan for Libya polls faces backlash from divided leaders
Members of the Libyan Army fire live ammunition during a drill in the western town of Tarhuna, on March 6, 2023. Rivalling Libyan parliament houses are derailing UNSMIL diplomat Abdoulaye Bathily plans to conduct elections in the war-torn country. PHOTO | MAHMUD TURKIA | AFP
The new United Nations (UN) envoy to Libya had hoped to usher in long-delayed elections, but his initiative is facing pushback from the country's eastern-based parliament and a lukewarm reception by its rivals in the capital Tripoli.
Senegalese diplomat Abdoulaye Bathily last month told the UN Security Council he planned to create a panel tasked with delivering presidential and legislative elections in conflict-torn Libya later this year.
