DistantNews
Support us
🇮🇩 Indonesia /Elections & Politics

Unity at Last: Is Libya’s Damaging Power Struggle at an End?

From Tempo · () Indonesian

Translated from Indonesian and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

Analysis Named sources New plan
  • Libya’s rival governments agreed through UN mediation to hold parliamentary and presidential elections within the next two years.
  • The agreement calls for restructuring the electoral commission and resolving previously disputed elements of the elections’ legal framework.
  • Analysts and officials caution that the deal remains limited, with its success dependent on whether its decisions prove binding.

After years of failed attempts, Libya’s rival governments have agreed to hold parliamentary and presidential elections within the next two years. The deal emerged through mediation by the United Nations, which described it as a step toward national elections and an end to the country’s transitional period.

The agreement includes plans to restructure Libya’s electoral commission and settle points in the elections’ legal framework that had previously caused disagreements. The UN is also seeking more than an election date. It wants a unified government to establish the conditions for a secure and trusted vote.

Libya has remained divided since the overthrow of Moammar Gadhafi in 2011, and since 2014 opposing governments have operated in the east and west. The UN-backed Government of National Unity is based in Tripoli, while its rival House of Representatives is based in Tobruk. Prime Minister Abdul-Hamid Dbeibah leads the western administration, while former warlord-turned-politician Khalifa Haftar is based in the east. Both sides rely on local militias and foreign powers, and previous efforts to hold elections that could reunite the country have failed.

The agreement marks an important step in advancing Libya towards national elections and ending the transitional period.

— UN Support Mission in LibyaUNSMIL issued the statement after the rival governments reached the agreement.

Andreas Dittmann, a conflict expert and professor at the University of Giessen, said the apparent unity was positive. “Things could not continue the way they were,” he told DW. He said many Libyans increasingly want a permanent end to the fighting and that foreign actors now appear more willing to incorporate both sides into one administration.

The UN has organized “Structured Dialogues” to seek agreement on leadership, security, the economy and reconciliation. Michael Bauer, who heads the Tunisia office of Germany’s Konrad Adenauer Foundation, called the agreement important but limited. Its success, he said, will depend on how binding its decisions are.

Things could not continue the way they were.

— Andreas DittmannThe University of Giessen professor described the agreement as a positive development after years of division.
About this summary

Originally published by Tempo in Indonesian. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

More Stories

From Our Blog