The Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya, Abdoulaye Bathily, voiced concern about the lack of progress in adopting the action plan related to the withdrawal of mercenaries, foreign forces and fighters from Libya, saying the ceasefire agreement has continued despite the escalatory rhetoric in Libya.
Briefing the UN Security Council on Tuesday, Bathily spoke about the efforts of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya to resume talks on the military track between members of the 5+5 Joint Military Commission (JMC), referring to its last meeting held a few days ago in Sirte.
Bathily stressed that all parties must take practical steps to strengthen the ceasefire in the country, warning that what he called “the maneuvers of postponing elections” will greatly deepen the crisis in Libya, and that there has been no progress in the course of the Libyan elections, which is frightening.
Bathily reiterated that the UNSMIL will seek in the coming weeks and months to facilitate dialogues between the main Libyan institutions as a step forward to overcome differences and progress towards organizing fair and free elections.
He called on the UN Security Council to urge all Libyan parties not to resort to violence and intimidation and to reiterate that any violations won’t go unaccounted for, welcoming the Security Council’s concentration on the importance of adopting a mechanism to define spending mechanisms and ensure that oil revenues are managed in a transparent and fair manner with effective Libyan monitoring.
Bathily said that inequality and the lack of transparency in the allocation of resources is one of the reasons for increasing tension in Libya, calling for the need to address this issue to avoid any escalation.
