Libya Protesters Call on PM to Quit in Third Weekly March
Hundreds of protesters gathered in central Tripoli on Friday for the third week in a row to demand the resignation of UN-recognized Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah following recent clashes in Libya's capital.
At least 200 people had assembled by late afternoon, with several hundred more following suit later. Some blasted slogans on loudspeakers from their cars.
Libya is split between the UN-recognized government in Tripoli, led by Dbeibah, and a rival administration in the east controlled by the family of military strongman Khalifa Haftar.
The North African country has remained deeply divided since the 2011 NATO-backed revolt that toppled and killed longtime leader Moamer Kadhafi.
National elections scheduled for December 2021 were postponed indefinitely due to disputes between the two rival powers, AFP reported.
The recent unrest came after deadly clashes between armed groups controlling different areas of Tripoli killed at least eight people, according to the UN.
The clashes were sparked by the killing of an armed faction leader by a group aligned with Dbeibah's government -- the 444 Brigade which later fought a third group, the Radaa force that controls parts of eastern Tripoli and the city's airport.
The fighting broke out also after Dbeibah announced a string of executive orders seeking to dismantle Radaa and dissolve other Tripoli-based armed groups but excluding the 444 Brigade.
The government and UN support mission in Libya have been pressing efforts to reach a permanent ceasefire since.
Last Saturday, a separate protest in Tripoli drew hundreds in support of Dbeibah.
Demonstrators condemned the armed groups and called for the reinstatement of Libya's 1951 constitution, which was abolished by Kadhafi after his 1969 coup.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Arab News
an hour ago
- Arab News
Pakistani delegation arrives in New York to meet UN officials, OIC members after India standoff
ISLAMABAD: A nine-member Pakistani delegation led by former foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has arrived in New York to meet top United Nations officials and Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) members, state-run media reported on Monday, as Islamabad prepares to present its perspective on its recent military standoff with arch-rival India. Constituted by the Pakistani prime minister last month, the delegation received a briefing from the foreign office on Pakistan's military standoff with India last month. Bhutto Zardari said his team also received a briefing from the foreign office on contentious issues like the Kashmir dispute, 'terrorism,' and India's unilateral move to suspend the Indus Waters Treaty. Pakistan and India last month engaged in the most serious fighting between them since 1999. Both pounded each other with missiles, drone strikes and artillery fire in four days of conflict before US President Donald Trump brokered a ceasefire on May 10. Tensions had soared after India blamed Pakistan for being involved in an April 22 attack on a tourist resort in the part of Kashmir administered by India. Islamabad denied involvement. 'A nine-member parliamentary delegation led by Chairman Pakistan Peoples Party Bilawal Bhutto Zardari is in New York to hold meetings with the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, President of the UN General Assembly, as well as the Ambassadors of Permanent and non-permanent members of the UN Security-Council,' state broadcaster Radio Pakistan reported. 'During the visit, the delegation will present Pakistan's perspective on the recent military clash with India and to counter New Delhi's disinformation campaign.' It did not specify how long the delegation would stay in New York. The state broadcaster said that besides these meetings, the delegation will also brief members of the OIC at the UN. Bhutto Zardari, along with other members of the delegation, will also interact with media representatives during his visit to New York. The development takes place as India presents its point of view to the world on its recent conflict with Pakistan. The Indian government has appointed Congress party lawmaker and author Shashi Tharoor as the head of a delegation in its attempts to convince world capitals that Pakistan supports cross-border 'terrorism' and to justify New Delhi's attacks against its neighboring country last month. Nuclear-armed India and Pakistan have fought two out of three wars over the disputed Himalayan territory of Kashmir since 1947. Both govern the territory in parts but claim its ownership in full. India accuses Pakistan of harboring militants who carry out cross-border attacks targeting citizens and law enforcers in the Kashmir territory that it administers. Pakistan denies the allegations and says it only extends diplomatic and moral support to the people of Kashmir. While the ceasefire between the two countries has continued to hold since last month, tensions persist as India vows to hold in abeyance the decades-old Indus Waters Treaty. Pakistan has said any attempts to divert or stop its flow of water would be considered an 'act of war.'
Arab News
an hour ago
- Arab News
Nations urged to make UN summit a ‘turning point' for oceans
PARIS: Nations will be under pressure to deliver more than just rhetoric at a UN oceans summit in France next week, including much-needed funds to better protect the world's overexploited and polluted seas. The third UN Ocean Conference (UNOC) seeks to build global unity and raise money for marine conservation even as nations disagree over deep-sea mining, plastic trash and overfishing. On Sunday, hosts France are expecting about 70 heads of state and government to arrive in Nice for a pre-conference opening ceremony, including Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. Oceans are 'in a state of emergency' and the June 9 to 13 meeting 'will not be just another routine gathering,' said UN under-secretary-general Li Junhua. 'There's still time to change our course if we act collectively,' he told reporters. Most countries are expected to send ministers or lower-level delegates to the summit, which does not carry the weight of a climate COP or UN treaty negotiation or make legally binding decisions. The United States under President Donald Trump — whose recent push to fast-track seabed mining in international waters sparked global outrage — is unlikely to send a delegation at all. France has promised the summit will do for ocean conservation what the Paris Agreement did for global climate action. Nations present are expected to adopt a 'Nice Declaration': a statement of support for greater ocean protection, coupled with voluntary additional commitments by individual governments. Greenpeace has slammed the text — which was agreed after months of negotiation — as 'weak' and said it risked making Nice 'a meaningless talking shop.' Pacific leaders are expected to turn out in force and demand, in particular, concrete financial commitments from governments. 'The message is clear: voluntary pledges are not enough,' Ralph Regenvanu, environment minister for Vanuatu, told reporters. The summit will also host business leaders, international donors and ocean activists, while a science convention beforehand is expected to draw 2,000 ocean experts. France has set a high bar of securing by Nice the 60 ratifications needed to enact a landmark treaty to protect marine habitats outside national jurisdiction. So far, only 28 countries and the European Union have done so. Olivier Poivre d'Arvor, France's oceans envoy, says that without the numbers the conference 'will be a failure.' Bringing the high seas treaty into force is seen as crucial to meeting the globally-agreed target of protecting 30 percent of oceans by 2030. The summit could also prove influential on other higher-level negotiations in the months ahead and provide 'a temperature check in terms of ambition,' said Megan Randles, head of Greenpeace's delegation at the Nice conference. In July the International Seabed Authority will deliberate over a long-awaited mining code for the deep oceans, one that Trump has skirted despite major ecological concerns. That comes in the face of growing calls for governments to support an international moratorium on seabed mining, something France and roughly 30 other countries have already backed. And in August, nations will again seek to finalize a binding global treaty to tackle plastic trash after previous negotiation rounds collapsed. Countries and civil society groups are likely to use the Nice meeting to try to shore up support ahead of these proceedings, close observers said. Nations meeting at UN conferences have struggled recently to find consensus and much-needed finance to combat climate change and other environmental threats. Oceans are the least funded of all the UN's sustainable development goals but it wasn't clear if Nice would shift the status quo, said Angelique Pouponneau, a lead negotiator for the Alliance of Small Island States. 'With so many competing crises and distractions on the global agenda, it's hard to be confident that the level of ambition needed will actually show up,' Pouponneau told AFP. Costa Rica, which is co-hosting the conference with France, said public and private commitments of $100 billion with 'clear timelines, budgets and accountability mechanisms' could be expected. 'This is what is different this time around — zero rhetoric, maximum results,' Maritza Chan Valverde, Costa Rica's permanent representative to the UN, told reporters. Pepe Clarke, oceans practice leader from WWF, told AFP there was 'an understandable level of skepticism about conferences.' But he said Nice must be 'a turning point... because to date the actions have fallen far short of what's needed to sustain a healthy ocean into the future.'
Arab News
9 hours ago
- Arab News
Algeria ‘regrets' Britain backing Morocco autonomy plan for W.Sahara
ALGIERS: Algeria's foreign ministry said it 'regrets' Britain's decision on Sunday to support Morocco's automony plan for the disputed territory of Western Sahara, overturning a decades-long policy in favor of self-determination. 'Algeria regrets the choice made by the United Kingdom to support to the Moroccan autonomy plan. In 18 years of existence, this plan has never been submitted to the Sahrawis as a basis for negotiation, nor has it ever been taken seriously by the successive UN envoys,' the ministry said in a statement.
