Libya’s eastern-based military leader, General Khalifa Haftar proclaimed himself as the country’s ruler by “popular mandate,” with his Libyan National Army (LNA) accepting to take formal control of the country.
In a televised speech on Monday night, the LNA leader announced that the General Command of the Armed Forces had “accepted the will of the people” to rule the country, marginalising a civilian administration that nominally governs eastern Libya.
Haftar added that the 2015 UN-brokered deal that led to the formation of the internationally-recognised Government of National Accord (GNA) in a bid to unite the country, was “a thing of the past”, pledging that his authorities would proceed with the creation of a new government.
“The political agreement destroyed the country. We will work to create the conditions for building permanent civic institutions,” the military commander said during his speech.
The UN-backed GNA accused Haftar of power grab and for attempting another coup, saying in a statement on Tuesday that “it’s a farce and the latest in a long series of coups d’etat.”
The same day, France condemned the unilateral actions in Libya, failing, however, to mention Haftar and the new military rule by LNA. It stressed, instead, that the conflict could only come to an end through bilateral dialogue.
“Conflicts will not end with unilateral decisions. There is no alternative to the political solution that was made within the framework of Berlin conference,” said Olivier Gauvin, Deputy spokesperson for the country’s Foreign Ministry.
On April 25, the foreign ministers of Germany, France and Italy, along with EU’s top diplomat, Josep Borrell, issued a joint call for a ceasefire in Libya, urging all warring sides to resume peace talks.
The country is under civil unrest since 2011, when its long-standing ruler Muammar Gaddafi was overthrown. In April 2019, Haftar launched an offensive to wrest control of the capital, Tripoli. Conflict in the civil war-torn country recently re-escalated after the GNA forces launched a counteroffensive and expelled Haftar’s troops from several key western cities.
