BENGHAZI // The militia-backed administration in the Libyan capital has declined to give permission for the UN envoy to Libya to land in Tripoli, the diplomat said on Wednesday.
Martin Kobler said he “wanted to help pave the way to peace” and stressed that the United Nations must be given access to the Libyan capital.
Tripoli authorities could not be immediately reached for comment on their refusal to allow Mr Kobler to land.
But a Tripoli-based media official, Jamal Zubia, said on his Facebook page that the UN envoy “will not visit Tripoli before Monday”. There was no further explanation.
Five years after the uprising that led to the ousting and killing of longtime autocrat Muammar Qaddafi, Libya has been left deeply divided. Rule is divided between an internationally-recognised government and parliament based in the east and a rival government and parliament in Tripoli, which is backed by militia.
Mr Kobler has been pressing Libya’s rival administration to reconcile and accept a third, UN-backed government that emerged from a December political agreement between Libya’s factions.
The new UN-backed government is facing major challenges, however – including how to get into Tripoli, something that had been tentatively planned for later this week.
Earlier, Mr Kobler had been slightly more optimistic, saying on Tuesday that although he didn’t have the exact date, it’s “a matter of days, not weeks” before the unity government installs itself in Tripoli despite opposition from the city’s authorities.
The unity government, which is headed by a little-known Libyan technocrat, Fayez Serraj, is supposed to replace the two rival administrations.
Amid this chaos, ISIL has taken control of a central Libyan city and its surroundings, which in turn has given new impetus to Western countries and the UN to try to piece the country back together.
Mr Kobler said “it is urgent to stop the expansion” of ISIL into neighbouring countries such as Tunisia. Mr Serraj said that the world and the region “must react quickly” to stop the “cancer.” He called on Libyans to set aside differences and build a new, safe Libya.
* Associated Press
