in

Weekly News Digest – April 30 2016

Your top stories from the past week:

---

Libyan Prime Minister Fayez Al Sarraj Calls on the HOR to Complete Their Responsibility(Author: Libyan Gazette Editorial Staff)
Yesterday Libyan Prime Minister Designate Fayez Al Sarraj issued a statement through an online video from Tripoli, announcing his plans to battle the threat of ISIS through the unification of all parties under his government, and without foreign intervention. Sarraj spoke of the progress made by the Presidential Council that began with …

Read more.

---

Britain Supports Libya’s Unity Government in their Fight Against ISIS(Author: Libyan Gazette Editorial Staff)
Britain’s Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond stated Friday that he saw “no immediate threat to Europe from Islamic State bases in Libya,” and did not foresee the Government of National (GNA) to ask for foreign aid anytime soon, reported Reuters. …

Read more.

---

Eastern Government’s Blacklisted Rogue Oil Tanker Returns to Libya After UN Sanctions(Author: Libyan Gazette Editorial Staff)
The blacklisted Indian-flagged oil tanker, the Distya Ameye, is returning to Libya after the eastern government’s rival oil corporation failed to illegally export 650,000 barrels of crude oil. The oil tanker which set sail from the eastern port of Marsa el-Hariga late Monday towards Malta was ultimately unable to export its first illegal shipment of …

Read more.

---

UAE’s Intervention has Prolonged and Intensified Libya’s Multitude of Problems(Author: Libyan Gazette Editorial Staff)
New Armored Personal Carriers donated by the UAE to the Libyan National Army Despite the establishment of the newly formed UN-backed Government of National Accord (GNA), the UAE on April 23rd sent an illegal shipment of several donated Armored Personal Carriers (APC) and military pick-up trucks to the the army formed by the eastern government …

Read more.

---

A United Armed Forces Is The Only Way To Win The Fight Against Isis In Libya(Author: Libyan Gazette Editorial Staff)
ISIS militants in Sirte, Libya Libya’s UN-backed Government of National Accord (GNA) called on all political factions to refrain from any military operations against ISIS controlled Sirte until a unified military force is established. Prime Minister Fayez Al-Sarraj stated Thursday that any isolated campaigns against ISIS in Sirte could spark clashes between the various political …

Read more.

---

HOR Reluctance to Move Forward is Causing a Deteriorating Health Care Situation(Author: Libyan Gazette Editorial)
Libya’s continuing political conflict has left the healthcare system in shatters with 60 per cent of hospitals closed and many operating on a reduced schedule due to damage and lack of resources. After visiting a site in Libya, Dr. Mego Terzian, president of Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) France, stated …

Read more.

---

Libya Begins To See Political Progress And Increased Security Under GNA(Author: Libyan Gazette Editorial Staff)
The political situation in Libya is beginning to stabilize and head in the right direction as the UN-backed Government of National Accord (GNA) gains more political support, placing the eastern government under increased international pressure to vote in confidence of Fayez al-Sarraj’s government, and the threat of ISIS diminishes. The eastern government’s House of Representatives …

Read more.

---

Libyan Political Dialogue Committee has Accomplished its Mission(Author: Libyan Gazette Editorial Staff)
Libyan dialogue members set date for signing the Libyan Political Agreement As we assess the historical political events and conflicts in contrast with the current political climate in Libya and the way forward with the UN-backed Government of National Accord, there is no doubt that the parties who played a critical role in the Libyan …

Read more.

---

UN Envoy Kobler Calls on Eastern Government to Respect the Presidential Council’s Authority Over Oil Resources(Author: Libyan Gazette Editorial Staff)
UN envoy Kobler calls on all parties in Libya to respect PC authority over Libya’s natural resources Martin Kobler, head of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL), stated he was deeply concerned over recent ISIS attacks on Libyan oil fields, and called on all parties to respect the authority of the UN-backed Presidency …

Read more.

---

UN Blacklists Ship Carrying Eastern Government’s Illegal Shipment of Oil(Author: Libyan Gazette Editorial Staff)
Martin Kobler, said he condemned the House of Representative’s attempts to “illicitly” export crude oil from its breakaway NOC, accusing the eastern government of not acting under the authority of the legitimate governing body of Libya, the Government of National Accord. Kobler, who …

Read more.

---

Hesitation of the HoR could increase chaos and security deterioration within Libya(Author: Libyan Gazette Editorial Staff)
The UN-backed Libyan Government of National Accord took control of several major ministries on Monday in its continued efforts to establish itself and implement the Libyan Political Agreement. It assumed charge of the foreign ministry, as well as the ministries for housing and public utilities, transport, social affairs, local government, youth and sports, and Islamic …

Read more.

---

Eastern Libyan Government Illegally Exports First Shipment of Crude Oil(Author: Libyan Gazette Editorial Staff)
A shipment carrying 650,000 barrels of crude oil has illegally set sail from the Eastern Libyan port of Hariga despite objections from authorities in the capital Tripoli, a defiant move which could further destabilize the conflict-ridden country. Libyan authorities in Tripoli have asked the UN Security Council to blacklist the Distya Ameya, an Indian-flagged tanker …

Read more.

---

Rogue Libyan Eastern Government loads illegal shipment of oil despite objections(Republished from the Wall Street Journal)
A government that controls Libya’s eastern half said its oil company has loaded its first shipment of oil over the objections of the North African nation’s internationally recognized oil company. If completed, the delivery …

Read more.

---

HOR Supporters of Libyan Gen. Khalifa Hifter Obstructing Confidence Vote(Republished from Stratford)
Libya’s Tripoli-based government has split in two over whether or not to back the internationally recognized unity Government of National Accord (GNA), which arrived in the city last week. On April 5, some 70 members of the General National Congress (GNC) — the unrecognized Islamist government that has operated out of Tripoli since August 2014 — voted to …

Read more.

---

Call for Repeal of LPA Article VIII Requiring Transfer of Senior Military Powers Illegal(Author: Libyan Gazette Editorial Staff)
For weeks HoR members have been delaying the vote of confidence for the Presidential Council due to internal forces calling for the repeal of Article VIII after months of negotiations that resulting in the historic Libyan Political Agreement. At a time when members demanded the Parliament of Tobruk insist on the removal of Article VIII, …

Read more.

---

Libyan lawmakers say majority back unity plan, but no vote yet(Republished from Reuters)
Libya’s internationally recognized parliament, which was forced out of the capital by factional violence, failed to vote for a unity government this week, but a majority of members restated their support and urged it to start work. The parliament’s approval is a vital part of a U.N.-backed plan to reconcile the administration set up by the recognized …

Read more.

---

Kobler: The HoR has to decide on the Government of National Accord - they have to endorse it!(Excerpts from Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Libya, Press Conference in Tripoli)

17 April 2016 – Thank you very much; it’s a pleasure to be here today among you, the first time with the press here. I am just coming from an extensive meeting with the Presidency Council and this was a meeting among friends and partners. This is my second visit here since the arrival of the Presidency Council to Tripoli …

Read more.

A United Armed Forces Is The Only Way To Win The Fight Against Isis In Libya

UAE’s Intervention has Prolonged and Intensified Libya’s Multitude of Problems