Libya funding of the brand new authorities.Libyan Prime Minister Abdel Hamid Dbeibah and his government for national unity, which are to steer the transition until the elections scheduled for December 24, were sworn in on Monday, March 15.
Abdel Hamid Dbeibah was appointed on charges of corruption more than a month ago, on February 5, as part of a UN-sponsored political process to lift Libya out of a decade of chaos and violence.
Prime Minister Abdel Hamid Dbeibah, his 32 ministers and his two deputy prime ministers have vowed to “preserve Libya’s unity, security and integrity”.
Originally planned for Benghazi, the cradle of the uprising that led to Muammar Gaddafi’s regime in 2011, the investment ceremony finally took place for logistical reasons at Parliament’s temporary seat, located in the port city of Tobruk in 2014, 1,300 kilometers east of the capital Tripoli.
Several ambassadors as well as the Speaker of the Libyan Parliament were present. An important security device was deployed in the city.
For years, the country has been divided into two camps, namely the Government of National Unity (GNA) in Fayez el-Sarraj, in the West, recognized by the UN, and Abdallah al-Theni’s parallel cabinet, not recognized by the international community in the East, a region controlled by Marshal Khalifa Haftar’s forces. Neither Fayez el-Sarraj nor Abdallah al-Theni were present during the presentation on Monday.
Abdel Hamid Dbeibah and his transitional government are therefore officially joining a country that continues to be undermined by influence struggles, militia weight, the presence of foreign fighters as well as corruption. They have the heavy task of organizing elections at the end of the year, but also of trying to fix the economy and unite institutions.
They will also have to secure the departure of the 20,000 foreign mercenaries still stationed in Libya.
The new government for national unity had on Wednesday obtained a declaration of confidence that was “historic” for deputies.
On Friday, the UN Security Council called for the “withdrawal without further delay of all foreign forces and mercenaries from Libya.”
