Experts Libya Unlikely To Witness Political Normalcy In 2024

(MENAFN- Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)) Report by Khaled Jabbar
TUNIS, Jan 14 (KUNA) -- Libya's Political spectrum has remained stagnant amid the nation's splinter into warring entities embroiled in very complex political disputes.
Political fragmentation is forecast to remain predominant throughout the new year, with a national unity government led by Abdul Hamid Al-Dbeibeh in control of the capital Tripoli and some other western regions vis-a-vis a government led by Osama Hammad, empowered by the parliament, based in East Libya.
Mustafa Abdulkabir, an expert in Libyan affairs, has ruled out in an interview KUNA prospects of national conciliation in 2024, as "all the indications are negative with respect to holding comprehensive elections."
The United Nations has affirmed the significance of holding nationwide elections to form a unity government and restore normalcy, frequently poisoned with armed fighting among the foe groups of the North African nation.
Al-Dbeibeh, Abdulkabir said, has intransigently insisted that he will rescind powers only when comprehensive polls are held with his personal participation in the process, while the parties in the east namely strongman Khalifa Haftar demand Al-Dbeibeh's resignation before holding the elections.
The situation in Libya is explosive due to the deep divisions between the internationally backed Al-Dbeibeh's government and the authority in the east, namely Tobruk parliament, Haftar's forces, and emerging power-thirsty groups in the south, added Abdulkabir.
Al-Dbeibeh's government had been established with international backing and following UN-sponsored dialogue starting with negotiations in Geneva and ending with Sukhairat agreement in Morocco.
There are, in addition to the disputes on the surface, deep rifts. Members and blocs of Aguila Saleh's parliament are at odds over the vision for establishing a unified authority. Moreover, the squabbles often shift to the streets with recurring gunfights among the divergent groups, aggravating the jitters and maintaining economic paralysis in the oil-rich nation.
The UN envoy to Libya Abdoulaye Bathily has been trying, in vain, to narrow the gulf among the foes to push for holding elections, as an avenue to salvage the nation from stagnation and fragmentation.
At the economic level, Abdulkabir said, the oil wealth, under the current chaotic conditions, is not benefiting the people, citing as an example wrath expressed by citizens who shut down oil and gas installations, in the south recently, due to lack of these resources domestically.
He added that 2024 would be a hard year for the Libyans with no glimmers of hope to resolve the mounting political, economic, and social problems, afflicting the nation since the ouster of Colonel Moammar Al-Gdahafi's regime in 2011.
Kamal bin Youness, an academic specializing in international and geopolitical affairs, metaphorically summed up the crisis, saying, "All the parties have not yet agreed on splitting the cake," alluding to the country's abundant valuable resources namely the crude oil and gas. (end)
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