Libya’s government accuses rival Haftar of a coup d’etat
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Libya’s UN-recognised government accused rival military commander Khalifa Haftar of seeking to stage a new coup after he claimed to have a “mandate” from the people to govern the country.
“It’s a farce and the latest in a long series of coups d’etat,” the Government of National Accord (GNA), which is based in the capital, Tripoli, said in a statement on Tuesday.
“What the war criminal Haftar said was a coup on the democratic path, not new but a continuation of his failed coups and to cover up his repeated defeats,” it added.
France said on Tuesday that the Libyan conflict could not be solved through unilateral decisions, but only under U.N.-backed dialogue after Libya’s eastern-based military leader Khalifa Haftar’s move to seize control of the country.
“The solution to the Libyan conflict can only go through dialogue between the parties under the aegis of the United Nations, not through unilateral decisions,” Foreign ministry deputy spokesman Olivier Gauvin said in a statement that made no direct reference to Haftar.
“There is no alternative to an inclusive political solution, as part of the conclusions of the Berlin conference,” Gauvin said, adding Paris was attached to Libya’s unity and stability.
Haftar said on Monday his Libyan National Army (LNA) was accepting a “popular mandate” to rule over the country, apparently brushing aside the civilian authorities which nominally govern eastern Libya
The leader of LNA did not make clear however if a parliament elected in 2014 and also based in the east of the country backed his move.
Haftar claims his legitimacy from that parliament, which was forced to move its headquarters after violence ripped apart Tripoli six years ago.
The GNA said Haftar had “turned his back on the parallel political institutions that backed him and designated him” head of the army.
The Tripoli-based government urged Libyans to join “a comprehensive dialogue and continue in the democratic path to reach a comprehensive and permanent solution based on ballot boxes”.
