The United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) expressed on Sunday its deep concern about reports coming from the southern region on the mobilization of armed forces and the escalating cycle of statements and counter-statements, signaling growing risks of imminent conflict.
The Head of the UNSMIL, Ghassan Salame, called, in a statement posted on UNSMIL, on all parties in south Libya to exercise maximum restraint.
"I have visited the city of Sabha last week and sensed that the people of the South, representing different political and ethnic backgrounds, have a genuine desire to settle the issues dividing them, for a better future for their region. This is precisely what the South needs, addressing the pressing issues, the most important of which are the security and humanitarian concerns.” Salame added.
He added that the parties in the south were strongly convinced that war and conflicts would only exacerbate the situation rather than finding viable solutions for the lingering issues.
The self-styled army in eastern Libya, led by Khalifa Haftar, has launched a military operation to advance on the southwestern districts in Libya to "secure and protect the residents from terrorists and criminal groups."
The operation is aimed, according to Haftar's forces, to protect the people from the terrorists and criminals who work for foreign parties to change the topography of Libyan and its identity.
Meanwhile, armed groups in southern Libyan cities of Murziq and Sabha have rejected joining the operation forces of the self-styled army of Khalifa Haftar after arriving in Taminhint to control the southern region.
