The Libyan parliament on Tuesday said it wants the government-appointed under Fathi Bashagha to be based for now in Sirte, reported Reuters.
The statement comes amid an ongoing controversy over control of the capital, Tripoli, where another administration is not willing to hand over power.
Tension has been mounting since the Libyan parliament appointed a new government headed by Fathi Bashagha, a former interior minister, while Abdul Hamid Dbeibah insists on remaining at his post as the country’s prime minister.
Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah was appointed prime minister last year. The deadlock between the two prime ministers risks igniting a new round of conflict in the country after two years of comparative peace or splitting its territory again between rival camps.
Both the leaders are backed by armed factions and any attempt by Bashagha to force his way into Tripoli could result in fighting across western areas of Libya.
The parliament will hold its own next session in Sirte, in support of Bashagha’s government, said the chamber’s spokesperson Abdullah Belhaiq.
Libya has been in political turmoil since the 2011 NATO-backed uprising against Muammar Gaddafi and it split in 2014 between warring factions in the west and in the east.
Dbeibah’s government was appointed last year to run all of Libya for an interim period as part of a peace process that was meant to include national elections in December. After the election process collapsed amid disputes over the rules, the eastern-based Libyan parliament said Dbeibah’s term had expired and moved to appoint its own administration.
But, Dbeibah claims that his government is still valid and that he will hand over power only after an election.
Now, Libyans are waiting for the stalled elections to take place in the hope that the vote will contribute to ending years of armed conflict that have plagued the oil-rich country.
