The UN envoy to Libya Abdoulaye Bathily held a meeting on Sunday at the Rixos Hotel's Hall in Tripoli with leaders of armed factions in Tripoli and the western region, most of which are affiliated with the Ministries of Interior and Defense of the Government of National Unity.
Sources close to the attendees said that the meeting focused on Bathily's initiative to bring together what he described as the main parties in Libya at a five-party negotiating table, confirming that the leaders of the armed factions expressed their dismay at the House of Representatives' Speaker Aqila Saleh and Khalifa Haftar’s insistence that Dbeibah withdraws from the negotiations or the UN must invite the PM of the parallel government, Osama Hammad.
The sources added that the leaders of the armed factions called for the exclusion of Khalifa Haftar from the negotiations or the invitation of a representative for them, given that they collectively represent the same weight as Haftar in the eastern region.
According to a statement published by the UN Support Mission in Libya, Bathily reminded the attendees of the need to perform their duty to bring peace and stability to Libya and “heal the wounds of the past and rebuild the country,” stressing that Libya belongs to all Libyans, and it should not be "a hostage to any group or group of individuals".
“After 13 years of conflict and instability in Libya, the people of Libya deserve a better life and the time has come to embrace a vision that allows the youth of this country to realize their full potential,” Bathily said.
The UN mission indicated that Bathily was working to facilitate a comprehensive peace process that would lead to a solution "led and owned by the Libyans", and to take the necessary measures to prevent the eruption of conflict again, including efforts aimed at unifying security and military institutions.
It stressed that Bathily would continue to engage all concerned Libyan parties, including various security and military actors across Libya, to ensure support for reaching a comprehensive peaceful solution to the current political impasse and to revive the electoral process.
