Libya’s House of Representatives has issued a strongly worded official statement expressing its profound sorrow over the bloody clashes erupting in Tripoli between fellow citizens. The statement reads:
“Our great Libyan people witness with bleeding hearts the fratricidal fighting, and we grieve the fall of innocent victims, the assault on public and private property, and the reckless handling of the nation’s and citizens’ affairs. This occurs as we stand at the end of the tunnel towards breaking the stalemate in the political process and ending regional and institutional division through the formation of a single, unified government to manage the country’s internal and external affairs with ease and efficiency, a step upon which the international community has agreed as the ultimate solution to the crisis in the country.
However, the clinging to power by the National Unity Government, which has lost the confidence of the House of Representatives, its continued manipulation of state institutions, and its desire to obstruct this national project – a result of strenuous efforts exerted by the House of Representatives, the High Council of State, and the United Nations Support Mission in Libya – have driven the country towards a state of internecine conflict.
The House of Representatives condemns and denounces the actions and behaviour of the National Unity Government and holds it fully nationally, legally, and morally responsible for the ongoing events in Tripoli. It demands the protection of civilians and their property.
The Council also holds the international community and the United Nations Support Mission in Libya responsible for their failure to exert sufficient international pressure on the National Unity Government to relinquish power and hand it over to a single, unified government. This includes withdrawing international recognition of its legitimacy and supporting and endorsing the House of Representatives and the High Council of State in forming a new, limited-mandate government tasked with ending institutional division and supporting the High National Elections Commission in organising simultaneous parliamentary and presidential elections in accordance with the proposal and opinion of the Advisory Committee, which was specifically mandated to address contentious issues within the electoral framework.
We call upon the High Council of State to talk with the House of Representatives and immediately begin work and coordination to form a single, unified government as quickly as possible, whose mandate and competence shall be to calm the situation and establish security and peace.
In conclusion, the Council’s statement emphasised: “The House of Representatives gives the utmost importance to the immediate cessation of fighting, the opening of safe corridors, and enabling the competent authorities to carry out their duties in protecting civilians, conducting rescue and ambulance operations, and extinguishing fires.”