The foreign ministers of Italy, Germany, France, and the European Union’s top diplomats have made a joint declaration for a humanitarian lull in Libya, stating all sides must engage in peace talks.
“We want to unite our voices to those of the U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and his Acting Special Representative for Libya, Stephanie Turco Williams, in their call for a humanitarian truce in Libya,” the statement said.
In a collaborative statement by the EU’s Josep Borrell, France’s Jean-Yves Le Drian, Italy’s Luigi di Maio and Heiko Maas of Germany they encouraged Libyans to get inspired by the spirit and doctrine of the Holy Ramadan and also unite for a genuine ceasefire.
Last month, the conflict in Libya escalated with wild fighting on several fronts in the western region of the country despite urgent calls from the U.N. and aid agencies, for a truce to tackle the coronavirus crisis.
It would be recalled that a parley for a peace process in Libya was held last January in Berlin, Germany. World leaders like Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo were in attendance. Other countries invited were the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Algeria, China, and the Republic of Congo.
With this regress of attacks and strikes in the country, there is an evident need for more peace talks and specific actions that can hold harmony and serenity for a longer time.
The oil-rich country has been dealing with a second Libyan civil war and revolution since 2011 due to attacks from loyalists of late President Muammar Gaddafi.
It further escalated into a divided leadership between Khalifa Haftar of Libyan National Army and United Nations’ recognized president, Mohammed Yousef el-Magariaf.
Reuters reports that the European Union has launched a new naval and air mission in the eastern Mediterranean to stop more arms reach warring factions in Libya. However, this cannot patrol the Egypt-Libya land border, through which artillery is still being delivered.
