Libya Security Highlights (August 15 – 21, 2022)

NATIONAL SECURITY ISSUES

• The United Nations Security Council is scheduled to discuss the situation in Libya by the end of this week, according to the council’s agenda for August. The Security Council will hold a briefing followed by consultations regarding the country on Wednesday, August 24. Both the briefing and subsequent consultations will focus on the internationally imposed sanctions on the country as well as the U.N. Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL).
• “In 2022, over 194,000 people in Libya benefited from humanitarian assistance including food, education, health, shelter and protection services provided by UN and humanitarian partners, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Libya (OCHA). 
• 103 migrants, including women and children, have been evacuated from Libya to Rwanda on Thursday night (August 18), announced the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) on Friday. In a statement via its Facebook page, UNHCR Mission in Libya explained that, in addition to women and children, the group included “survivors of violence” and most of whom “had been living in urban areas.” “In Rwanda, they will receive support from UNHCR at the Emergency Transit Mechanism centre in Gashora, while further solutions are sought for them, including resettlement,” said the U.N. agency.

• Dozens of migrants were rounded up in the Libyan capital Tripoli on Monday in the country’s latest crackdown. Police, backed by the so-called Security Directorates Support Force, in the capital raided the migrants’ homes in Airport Road area early on Monday, August 15, according to a statement by the force. The force claimed that the raids followed an increase in crimes including prostitution, robbery and drug trafficking in the area. The statement said legal measures would be taken against the migrants. The migrants were pictured sitting on the ground in an open area surrounded by armed forces.

• The Chairman of Libya’s Presidential Council, Mohamed Al-Menfi, met on Monday (August 15) afternoon with a delegation representing the Magarha tribe at the council’s headquarters in Tripoli. According to a statement by the council, the talks between Menfi and Magarha delegates focused on “national reconciliation and achieving stability in all regions of Libya.”

• Bent Bayya, a town in southern Libya, was declared a disaster area by the country’s parliament, two weeks after a deadly fuel tanker explosion in the town. Chaired by the First Deputy Speaker Fawzi Al-Nuiri, the House of Representatives opened its today’s session in Tobruk with a minute of silence in memory of the victims of the incident in Bent Bayya, which claimed the lives of at least 10 people and dozens were injured. During the session, the House Health Committee was formally tasked with follow-up on the conditions of the victims, both at home and abroad. The House urged Attorney General and the regulatory bodies to expedite the transmission of their reports about the incident for review by lawmakers.
• European Union Border Assistance Mission (UNBAM) in Libya, with the support of the Embassy of the Netherlands and the Royal Marechaussee trained the second group of the Libyan border authorities in the field of combating counterfeiting and forgery of documents. The training included human rights dimensions, obligations, and recommended best practices, according to Border Security Report.
• The Libyan House of Representatives discussed in its session the conditions of the victims of the fuel truck explosion in Bint Bayh in the South, and the measures taken by the executive state institutions in this regard. The session kicked off earlier today in the city of Tobruk, headed by the First Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Fawzi Al-Nuwairi, according to HoR official Spokesman, Abdulla Bleihiq.

NATIONAL POLITICS AND SOCIAL ISSUES

• The ongoing political deadlock in Libya was the focus of discussion between Deputy Chairman of the Presidential Council,Abdullah Al-Lafi, and British Ambassador to Libya, Caroline Hurndall, who met at the council’s headquarters in Tripoli on August 21. According to a statement by the council, the two reviewed “local and international efforts to search for a solution to the current political crisis between all parties, especially working to reach an agreement on the constitutional path between the House of Representatives and the High Council of State”. “They also discussed what the UK can offer to Libya, in the areas of capacity building and reconstruction,” added the council.
• The Acting Head of the U.N. Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL), Raisedon Zenenga, held talks on Thursday, August 18, Algeria’s Ambassador to Libya, Slimane Chenine, to exchange views on “the political and security developments in the country and discussed ways to overcome the current political stalemate,” according to UNSMIL. “Mr. Chenine conveyed Algeria’s support for UNSMIL’s efforts in facilitating the Libyan-led and -owned dialogue to find a path to elections as soon as possible,” the U.N. Mission said via Twitter on Friday. “Mr. Zenenga commended Algeria’s constructive engagement to promote stability and unity in Libya”.

• The Chairman of High Council of State, Khaled Al-Mishri, held talks on Wednesday, August 17, with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in Ankara. According to a statement by the council, the two discussed “bilateral relations, issues of common concern between the two countries, and the latest developments in the political situation in Libya.” “During the meeting, the Turkish President reiterated his country’s full support for the unity and stability of Libya and access to elections on a constitutional basis and consensual laws.”

• Prime Minister of the Tripoli-based Government of National Unity, Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh, welcomed the decision by the country’s Supreme Court to reactivate its Constitutional Chamber. “We congratulate the decision of the General Assembly of the Supreme Court to reactivate the Constitutional Chamber,” Dbeibeh said via Twitter. “Perhaps it will be a deterrent to abuses practiced by the parties, as well as deterrent against decisions violating the political agreement which is the constitutional document governing the stage,” he added. “The independence of the judiciary and the existence of a ruling constitution are the basis for the stability of the country,” concluded the premier.
• Libya’s Supreme Court will reactivate its Constitutional Chamber, announced the court’s Chief Justice, Counselor Mohamed Al-Hafi, on Thursday, August 18. “The General Assembly of the Supreme Court decides to reopen the constitutional chamber, which pledges to the Libyans that it will not take sides with any of the parties and that it will raise the status of the country and the established constitutional principles and rules,” Al-Hafi. The Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court is the body authorized to adjudicate cases and appeals of a constitutional and legal aspect. Its work has been suspended since 2016.

• The South Tripoli Court of Appeals has once again rescheduled its ruling on the case of former chairman of the National Oil Corporation (NOC), Mustafa Sanalla, to September 7, according to multiple press reports. The former NOC leader was removed from his post by outgoing prime minister, Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh, last July. Sanalla rejected the premier’s decision and filed an appeal before the judiciary. The case ruling was originally scheduled to be issued on July 27, but the appeal court announced it will postpone it until August 17.

• Libyan Attorney General Al-Siddiq Al-Sour said Public Prosecution monitored 3,829 forged ballot cards for the elections that were supposed to take place at the end of 2021 in Libya. “We also monitored the presence of 15,000 forged electoral cards during the 2012 General National Congress elections,” al-Sour added. “We monitored 23,000 beneficiaries of the Children’s Allowance Grant, with a value of more than 7 million dinars, in just 3 months, who are not registered in the Civil Registration system,” according to the Attorney General.
• Acting Head of UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) Raisedon Zenenga received Tuesday a group of Libyan Political Dialoge Forum (LPDF) members including Lamees Bin Saad, Khadija Abdulali, Ali Abdulaziz and Fayeq Dannah. LPDF members came to UNSMIL to share their ideas on how to overcome the current political stalemate and reach a political settlement that takes Libya to national elections, according to UNSMIL. They expressed concern about the tense security situation resulting from the prolonged political stalemate, UNSMIL tweeted.

  
• The current political deadlock and constitutional process are two of the main items on the agenda for the second day of talks in Libya’s House of Representatives, announced House Spokesman Abdullah Blihaq. The parliamentary session, which kicked-off today in Tobruk, will be chaired by First Deputy Speaker of the House, Fawzi Al-Nuiri, and will not be televised for the public.
• The Acting Head of the U.N. Mission in Libya (UNSMIL), Raisedon Zenenga, and Tunisian Ambassador to Libya, Lassâd Laajili, convened a meeting on Monday to “exchange views on developments on the political, security and economic tracks” in the country, according to a statement by UNSMIL. Both diplomats stressed “the imperative to end the current mobilization of armed groups and agree on a path to elections as the only way out of the political impasse.” “Mr. Zenenga expressed appreciation to Tunisia for its role in promoting consensus among Libyan actors, and for supporting a Libyan-led, Libyan-owned dialogue,” said the U.N. Mission. “He also commended the Tunisian government’s ongoing support for UNSMIL.”

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

• U.S. Ambassador and Special Envoy to Libya Richard Norland met Friday, August 19, in Tunis with Libyan youth from NDI’s Voices of Change program to discuss governance challenges and the future of Libya, according to US Embassy in Libya. “I was inspired by their desire to achieve their full potential in a safe & prosperous Libya,” the Ambassador said.

• Libyan Foreign Minister Najla Mangoush is in Washington where she held talks with the Assistant Secretary of the U.S. State Department Barbara A. Leaf in which they discussed “full support for the U.N. process”, according to the U.S. State Department. During the meeting, Leaf and her deputy Joshua Harris highlighted “U.S. opposition to steps by any party that might lead to escalating violence as key Libyan actors and international partners intensify efforts to restore momentum toward early elections,” the U.S. State Department said via Twitter.

• Undersecretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Omar Al-Kati, participated, on behalf of Foreign Minister Najla Al-Manqoush, in the coordination meeting of the African-Chinese Cooperation Forum (FOCAC) via the Zoom application. The meeting discussed the outcomes of the eighth session of the FOCAC Ministerial Meeting held in Dakar, Senegal, in November 2021. The speeches of the participating ministers focused on the partnership established between African countries and China within the forum’s framework and to enhance this partnership by implementing the outcomes of the Dakar meeting.

• The Chairman of Libya’s High Council of State, Khaled Al-Mishri, was hosted by Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu in Ankara for talks on the situation in Libya, announced the Turkish top diplomat. According to Çavuşoğlu, the two of them “evaluated recent developments and the election process in Libya.” The 54-year-old minister stated via Twitter that his country “will continue to give our strong support to brotherly Libya and will develop our cooperation in every field.”

• The Speaker of Libya’s House of Representatives, Aguila Saleh, and the Chairman of the High Council of State, Khaled Al-Mishri, arrived in Cairo for a meeting aimed at discussing the Libyan crisis, Italian news agency Nova reports. Citing unnamed sources, Nova said, during the Egypt-sponsored meeting, Saleh and Al-Mishri will discuss “possible alternatives relating to the current situation in Libya”, in which two rival governments are claiming legitimacy.