TRIPOLI, May 24 (NNN-Prensa Latina) President of Libya”s Presidential Council (PC), Fayez Al-Sarraj, has called on friendly countries this Thursday to assume their responsibilities and condemn the war in Tripoli.
I urge the brothers and friends of Libya to speak out in favor of a ceasefire, accompanied by the withdrawal of the invading forces’, Sarraj said at a meeting with several Arab, African and Western ambassadors.
The head of the PC stressed that the war will end and that the Libyans will return to the negotiating table, and called for the preparation of a political process to take into account the new realities created by the armed conflict.
Saraj also called for exploring a mechanism for dialogue involving all Libyans without exclusion and finding new partners with whom to negotiate: the political process needs people who can keep their word and believe in democracy and the peaceful exchange of power, he said.
The armed conflict began on April 4 when the self-proclaimed Libyan National Army, commanded by Marshal Khalifa Haftar, ordered its forces to march on Tripoli; since then there have been strong clashes in different parts of the south of Tripoli.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported that the use of explosive weapons has so far caused 129 fatalities in Tripoli since the beginning of the fighting.
OCHA revealed that out of that number of dead, 29 were civilians; and clarified that the registered attacks include the use of heavy artillery and aerial bombardments in populated areas.
The United Nations entity also clarified that more than 75,000 people have been displaced since last April as a result of the armed confrontations.
NNN-Prensa Latina
