After a two-year closure, the coastal road between eastern and western Libya was opened on Sunday, June 20. Reopened at the front line, about 370 kilometers from the capital Tripoli, in the presence of Prime Minister Abdel Hamid Dbeibah and several of these ministers. The road connects west of Libya, from its border with Tunisia, east to Egypt. An important step towards calming the country.
At the wheel of an excavator, the Prime Minister himself cleared three sand ponds that blocked the road. Quite a symbol … This 300 km long stretch of road between Misrata and Sirte had been closed since 2019. Since the offensive against the capital Tripoli by Marshal Khalifa Haftar, the strong man in eastern Libya. With this reopening, “one side will be chosen” welcomed Prime Minister Abdel Hamid Dbeibah.
This is indeed an important step, but in front of Marshal Haftar’s troops, the road is still closed. The reopening of this road is one of the conditions for the ceasefire signed in October last year between the Tripoli government and Marshal Haftar. It comes as the international community prepares to meet in Berlin this week, the second international conference to review the progress made in restoring peace, uniting the country and holding elections until the end of the year.
Marshal Khalifa Haftar’s forces claimed on Sunday that they had closed the border with Algeria. They said it was a “military zone” where all movement is prohibited. A closure that illustrates the division of power in Libya where the government of national unity, with the support of the international community, does not reduce the opposition of the Libyan national army under the leadership of Marshal Haftar.
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