Paris // Libya’s powerful General Khalifa Haftar, who answers to the parliament based in the country’s east, has accused the UN envoy to the divided country of “meddling” in Libyan affairs.
Gen Haftar, who’s forces captured four key central oil ports last week from the UN-backed Government of National Accord (GNA), criticised Martin Kobler’s offer to mediate a ceasefire in a worsening civil war.
Gen Haftar told Egypt’s state-run daily Al Ahram that “Kobler is meddling in very sensitive issues” after he offered to mediate a truce between the GNA and the House of Representatives parliament in Tobruk, whose forces the general commands.
Gen Haftar was promoted by the parliament to the rank of field marshall last week in recognition for his success in capturing the ports.
He told the Egyptian daily that Tripoli, where the GNA is based, had been “hijacked” by armed gangs.
The interview was published on Monday after the UN diplomat took to Twitter to offer himself as a broker in peace talks after a week of fighting around the oil ports.
“It’s up to the Libyans to find a peaceful solution,” Mr Kobler tweeted. “I stand ready to help and mediate.”
Some diplomats fear Libya is headed for all-out civil war after Gen Haftar’s Libya National Army captured the oil ports of Brega, El Sidra, Ras Lanuf and Zueitina between September 11 and September 13, pushing out a militia, the Petroleum Facilities Guard, which is aligned to the GNA.
On Sunday the Petroleum Facilities Guard launched a fierce counter-attack, sending fighters to attack Ras Lanuf and El Sidra. Militia units entered the town of Ras Lanuf adjacent to the refinery but were forced back by air strikes, with local media reporting an oil storage tank at El Sidra was set alight. Gen Haftar’s units then advanced 25km east, capturing one of the militia’s bases at the town of Bin Jawad.
The fighting halted the loading of a tanker, Seadelta, which had docked at Ras Lanuf.
Despite the fighting, the chairman of Libya’s National Oil Company insisted the ports were ready for business after Gen Haftar declared his troops would support operations resuming for the first time since fighting closed the ports in December 2014.
“The events in the Oil Crescent must have made it clear to everybody that the use of blockade as a tactic in our politics is a dead end,” Mustafa Sanallah was quoted as saying on the oil company’s website on Monday. “It is time to let Libya’s oil flow freely and get Libya back on its feet.”
However, Gen Haftar’s capture of the oil ports has shifted the balance of power from the GNA in the west back towards the House of Representatives in the east, which appears in no mood to compromise.
In a bid to bring the two governments together, Mr Kobler embarked on a round of hurried mediation, meeting the Arab League chief, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, for talks in Cairo at the weekend, which the UN envoy described as “long, constructive and friendly”.
However, Gen Haftar has refused several invitations to meet Mr Kobler, according to the diplomat, and his meeting with the House of Representatives president Agila Saleh in Cairo also produced no breakthrough.
Mr Kobler said his talks with Mr Saleh were an “open and frank exchange of views”, but relations between Mr Saleh and the UN are not warm.
Mr Kobler insists that, under the terms of UN Security Council resolution 2259, passed on December 23 last year, the House of Representatives must accept the GNA as Libya’s “legitimate” government, but Mr Saleh has steadfastly refused to accept it.
Many Tobruk politicians point out that while parliament was voted into office, in internationally approved elections in June 2014, the GNA was created by a commission, the Libya Dialogue, and has not submitted itself to approval by the Libyan electorate, raising questions about its right to govern.
Mr Kobler’s position as the key supporter and architect of the GNA may rule him out as a mediator between the GNA and the House of Representatives, not least because with the capture of the oil ports, the eastern parliament, which already controls the oil crescent that is home to two-thirds of Libya’s oil reserves, now dominates the country’s petroleum industry.
Yet without mediation, the conflict between the two governments, centred on the oilfields and ports, seems likely to intensify. Already fighting between militias, and attacks earlier this year by ISIL, have wrecked more than 17 oil storage tanks. More fighting might add to the carnage, presenting whichever side finally triumphs with a pyrrhic victory.
foreign.desk@thenational.ae
Dubai Bling season three
Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed
Rating: 1/5
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
COMPANY PROFILE
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THE SPECS
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How to keep control of your emotions
If your investment decisions are being dictated by emotions such as fear, greed, hope, frustration and boredom, it is time for a rethink, Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at online trading platform IG, says.
Greed
Greedy investors trade beyond their means, open more positions than usual or hold on to positions too long to chase an even greater gain. “All too often, they incur a heavy loss and may even wipe out the profit already made.
Tip: Ignore the short-term hype, noise and froth and invest for the long-term plan, based on sound fundamentals.
Fear
The risk of making a loss can cloud decision-making. “This can cause you to close out a position too early, or miss out on a profit by being too afraid to open a trade,” he says.
Tip: Start with a plan, and stick to it. For added security, consider placing stops to reduce any losses and limits to lock in profits.
Hope
While all traders need hope to start trading, excessive optimism can backfire. Too many traders hold on to a losing trade because they believe that it will reverse its trend and become profitable.
Tip: Set realistic goals. Be happy with what you have earned, rather than frustrated by what you could have earned.
Frustration
Traders can get annoyed when the markets have behaved in unexpected ways and generates losses or fails to deliver anticipated gains.
Tip: Accept in advance that asset price movements are completely unpredictable and you will suffer losses at some point. These can be managed, say, by attaching stops and limits to your trades.
Boredom
Too many investors buy and sell because they want something to do. They are trading as entertainment, rather than in the hope of making money. As well as making bad decisions, the extra dealing charges eat into returns.
Tip: Open an online demo account and get your thrills without risking real money.
Things Heard & Seen
Directed by: Shari Springer Berman, Robert Pulcini
Starring: Amanda Seyfried, James Norton
2/5
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
Key figures in the life of the fort
Sheikh Dhiyab bin Isa (ruled 1761-1793) Built Qasr Al Hosn as a watchtower to guard over the only freshwater well on Abu Dhabi island.
Sheikh Shakhbut bin Dhiyab (ruled 1793-1816) Expanded the tower into a small fort and transferred his ruling place of residence from Liwa Oasis to the fort on the island.
Sheikh Tahnoon bin Shakhbut (ruled 1818-1833) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further as Abu Dhabi grew from a small village of palm huts to a town of more than 5,000 inhabitants.
Sheikh Khalifa bin Shakhbut (ruled 1833-1845) Repaired and fortified the fort.
Sheikh Saeed bin Tahnoon (ruled 1845-1855) Turned Qasr Al Hosn into a strong two-storied structure.
Sheikh Zayed bin Khalifa (ruled 1855-1909) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further to reflect the emirate's increasing prominence.
Sheikh Shakhbut bin Sultan (ruled 1928-1966) Renovated and enlarged Qasr Al Hosn, adding a decorative arch and two new villas.
Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan (ruled 1966-2004) Moved the royal residence to Al Manhal palace and kept his diwan at Qasr Al Hosn.
Sources: Jayanti Maitra, www.adach.ae
Result
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