Libyan rivals sign ceasefire today in Moscow
The leader of the Libyan Government of National Unity (GNA) Fayez al-Sarraj and his rival, General Khalifa Haftar, are expected in Moscow today to sign a ceasefire agreement. This has been said by a high-ranking leader from Libya.
The signing of that agreement paves the way for a restart of the political process, the President of the Council of State (the equivalent of the Senate) in Tripoli, Khaled al-Mechri, explained to television channel Libya al-Ahrar. Mechri added that he would accompany Sarraj in Moscow. General Haftar will be assisted by the Speaker of the Libyan Parliament, Aguila Salah.
Haftar’s troops launched an offensive towards the capital Tripoli last year and gained a lot of ground in recent weeks. Libya is in chaos after the 2011 revolution that drove dictator Muammar al-Gaddafi from power.
The oil-rich country has two rival governments: the GNA in Tripoli, and the other based in the eastern city of Tobruk, which is allied with Haftar. Both parties reached a ceasefire agreement this weekend.
“Turn the page”
In a short televised speech, Sarraj called on the Libyan people “to turn the page”. “I call on all Libyans to turn the page on the past, to reject the discord and to close ranks on the road to peace and stability,” it sounded.
