Libya crisis: Rival governments commit to ceasefire

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-40718476

Libya crisis: Rival governments commit to ceasefire

25 July 2017

From the section Africa

Libya's opposing governments have committed to a conditional ceasefire following talks in France. UN-backed Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj and Khalifa Haftar, the rival military commander who controls the east, met in Paris on Tuesday. They are aiming to end the conflict which has engulfed the country since Col Muammar Gaddafi was ousted in 2011.

French President Emmanuel Macron said the rivals could soon be seen as symbols of Libya's reconciliation.

"We commit to a ceasefire and to refrain from any use of armed force for any purpose that does not strictly constitute counter-terrorism," they said in a joint, 10-point statement.

The document also pledged to move towards holding elections - which could take place as early as 2018 - and "building the rule of law" in a country struggling to control the armed groups which have stepped into the power vacuum left by the Gaddafi regime.
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