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Libya’s Haftar rejects Paris’ calls for a ceasefire in Libya
Libyan rebel commander Khalifa Haftar rejected calls for a ceasefire during talks with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris, but is willing to negotiate, only if certain conditions are met. The conditions weren’t made public, but the Elysée official said the Libyan National Army leader had questioned who would be on the other side of the table in any ceasefire negotiations. “He considers that the GNA (the UN-backed Government of National Unity led by Sarraj) is completely infested by militias and it is not for him to negotiate with representatives of these militias”, stated the Elysée official. Haftar justified his offensive by saying that he was fighting against “private militias and extremist groups”, reported France24. The battle for Tripoli has killed at least 510 people and forced 75.000 out of their homes. United Nations’ Libya envoy, Ghassan Salamé, said on 21 May that the current fighting could be the start of a long and bloody conflict in the country that could permanently divide it. On 21 May, he also told the Security Council, at the UNSC on the Situation in Libya, that extremists from the Islamic State group and al Qaeda are already exploiting the security vacuum.
- The Euromed news are edited by the team of the Euro-Mediterranean Policies Department of the European Institute of the Mediterranean -