A Libyan diplomatic source familiar with the course of the Libyan meetings going on in Morocco has revealed that Khaled Al-Mishri, head of the High Council of State, and Aqila Saleh, Speaker of Parliament, had agreed to push the constitutional path to the forefront of the scene, on the grounds that it would guarantee that the reasons, which led to the failure of the December 24 elections will not occur again.
Last week, a Moroccan news outlet confirmed that Aqila Saleh and Khaled Al-Mishri arrived in Rabat on Saturday, January 1, for talks that would focus on the postponed elections.
The diplomatic source anticipated that the agreement would be made public soon. "The two parties will declare their agreement to resolve the legal differences that led to the postponement of the elections by conducting them according to a permanent constitution," he explained in a press statement.
Al-Mishri and Saleh had managed to mobilize great support for the new map, especially from a number of candidates, with the aim to impose it on the scene as a fait accompli, the diplomat says, who also confirmed that the government structure remains an obstacle hindering the announcement of the agreement.
According to the source, Al-Mishri and Saleh met face to face, while key players including Khalifa Haftar, Fathi Bashagha, the Libyan Consul in Morocco Abdel Majid Saif Al-Nasr, and the former Libyan ambassador to the UAE, Al-Aref Al-Nayed, were kept abreast of the developments.
"The main constraint remains that the major powers considered the interim government as the legitimate authority until going to elections."
He indicated that there is concern about the possibility of repeating the previous scenario of Fayez Al-Sarraj's government if Dbeibah refuses to hand over power to another authority that is to be formed by consensus between the Parliament and the HCS.
The HCS head has expressed on several occasions his readiness to meet with Saleh in order to "reach a genuine solution" to the crisis, including discussing the constitutional basis for the elections, but what went on behind the closed doors in Morocco remains ambiguous.