U.S. advisor for Africa met with protests in Libyan city of Misrata

U.S. advisor for Africa, Massad Boulos, was met with protests upon his arrival in the Libyan city of Misrata. Citizens expressed strong opposition to a U.S. proposal aimed at unifying the divided North African nation, arguing that the plan primarily benefits specific political actors and risks perpetuating the ongoing instability.

The American initiative reportedly proposes consolidating Libya's two existing administrations into a single governing body. Under this plan, power would be shared between Saddam Haftar, son of eastern Libyan leader Khalifa Haftar, and Abdelhamid Dbeiba, the current prime minister of western Libya, who would retain his premiership for the entire country and also assume the role of defense minister. Misrata, a major economic and military hub with the country's most powerful militias, operates with significant autonomy.

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the proposal 'only benefits certain actors' and 'threatens to prolong the crisis' by involving the same leaders, which 'would reproduce the current stalemate.'

A coalition representing Misrata's elders, military leaders, and civil society representatives conveyed their rejection of the U.S. plan directly to Boulos. They stated that the proposal "threatens to prolong the crisis" by involving the same leaders currently in power, thereby risking a return to the current stalemate. The group issued a statement emphasizing their refusal of any political agreement that could "reproduce the Libyan crisis" or allow individuals implicated in past corruption or human rights abuses, as documented in UN reports, to regain influence.

While firmly rejecting the current U.S. proposal, the Misratan delegation did not entirely close the door to future American mediation. However, they stressed that any such involvement must uphold Libyan autonomy and independence, free from external interference, and ensure broad participation from across the country's social and political spectrum.

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We reject any political agreement that reproduces the Libyan crisis or opens the door to figures whose names have appeared in UN reports on corruption or human rights violations.