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BENGHAZI, Libya, March 3 (Reuters) – Libya’s political crisis could worsen further, with the new government set to be sworn in before the parliament that appointed it, accusing the incumbent on Thursday of kidnapping two of its members.
Former Interior Minister Fathi Bachagha, appointed Prime Minister last month by the Parliament of Tobruk, in the east of the country, and whose government team was approved by this same Parliament on Tuesday, must take an oath in the day.
But Abdoulhamid Dbeibeh, head of the government of national unity formed last year under the aegis of the UN to try to end the conflict which has torn the country apart for a decade, refuses to hand over power before elections are held. .
Fathi Bachagha’s office said early Thursday morning that his foreign and culture ministers were abducted by a militia linked to the Tripoli government as they attempted to reach Tobruk by land.
The Prime Minister-designate had complained on Wednesday evening that Abdoulhamid Dbeibeh had closed Libyan airspace to prevent members of the new government from traveling to Tobruk.
The spokesman for the government of Tripoli of Abdoulhamid Dbeibeh could not be immediately reached to comment on these accusations of kidnapping.
In Tobruk, a spokesperson for Parliament said that Fathi Bachagha’s swearing-in session would take place despite the probable absence of certain members of his government, who could take the oath later.
The validity of Parliament’s move to enthrone Fathi Bachagha seems questionable, according to the United Nations.
Spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres echoed in a statement overnight “worrying” reports that the vote of confidence in the new government team on Tuesday “didn’t did not reach the required standards in terms of transparency and the conduct of procedures” and was accompanied by “acts of intimidation” with the session.
The UN once again invites the two parties to avoid any initiative likely to accentuate divisions and to seek instead a political agreement to allow the holding of elections as soon as possible.
The Parliament of Tobruk supports the appointment of a new government because it considers that the mandate of Abdoulhamid Dbeibeh has expired after the postponement of a year of the presidential and legislative elections which were to take place at the end of December.
The Prime Minister in power in Tripoli disputed this interpretation and warned that he would not resign until after the elections.
The positioning of international powers will be crucial in the showdown that is emerging between these two executives for control of Libya, which raises the specter of territorial division and fighting between rival factions after a year and a half of relative calm.
The anchorage in Libya of many militias with uncertain allegiances, as well as the presence of foreign forces on the ground, in particular Russian and Turkish, makes the situation particularly volatile in this oil-producing country.
(Ayman al-Warfali report, written by Angus McDowall; French version Myriam Rivet, edited by Sophie Louet)