Libya’s Presidential Council on Sunday announced a revised line-up for a unity government under a United Nations-backed plan aimed at ending the conflict in the North African state.
One of the council’s members, Fathi al-Majbari, said in a televised statement that the list of 13 ministers and five ministers of state had been sent to Libya’s eastern parliament for approval.
Even so, two of the council’s nine members refused for a second time to put their signatures to the proposed government, according to a document posted on the Presidential Council’s Facebook page.
The UN plan under which the unity government is based was designed to Libya stabilize and tackle a growing threat from Islamic State militants. It was signed in Morocco in December, but has been opposed by hard-liners on both sides from the start and suffered repeated delays.
“We call on Libyans suffering from the fighting … and the members of parliament to support the Government of National Accord, which will provide the framework to fight terrorism,” Majbari said.
Libya descended into conflict in 2011 after long-serving leader Muammar Gaddafi was ousted in a Nato-backed uprising.
Since 2014, it has had two competing governments, one based in Tripoli and the other in the east, both of which are backed by loose alliances of armed brigades and former rebels.
Islamic State has taken advantage of a security vacuum to establish a foothold in Libya, taking control of the city of Sirte and threatening to expand from there. Western governments have urged Libyan factions to back the unity government so that it can start taking on the threat and call in international support where needed.
Last month the eastern parliament, which has been recognized internationally, rejected an initial proposal for a unity government amid complaints that, at 32, the number of ministers nominated was too high.
There have also been divisions over the distribution of posts and the future control of Libya’s armed forces
