Libya

[…] He will succeed Natalina Cea as of 1 January 2024, and his mandate will run until 30 June 2025. Jan Vyčítal is a Czech civil servant and diplomat, who has worked at senior level for more than 20 years, and currently serves as Ambassador of the Czech Republic to Tunisia, with accreditation for Libya.

Members of the High Council of State (HCS) and House of Representatives (HoR) from the southern region announced on Wednesday their rejection of the initiative of the United Nations envoy to Libya, Abdoulaye Bathily, regarding the political process that had witnessed a stalemate in the recent period.

The Security Council decided today to extend until 31 October 2024 the mandate of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL), as it expressed concern about the humanitarian impact of catastrophic flooding in the east of the country and urged Libyan political institutions and key stakeholders to resolve outstanding differences on the road to nationwide elections.

The Libyan parliament on Wednesday demanded the departure of ambassadors from countries that "support" Israel as it fights Hamas militants in Gaza, taking specific aim at the United States, Britain, France and Italy.

[…] In the bid to finally hold national elections towards a new unity government the UNSMIL chief noted some progress.

The EU may extend its naval military operation Irini off Libya to include Tunisia, as a further means to prevent people from fleeing on boats towards Italy.

Military strongman Khalifa Haftar, whose forces dominate eastern Libya, held talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Thursday, his forces and the Kremlin said. Haftar, who sponsors a rival administration to Libya's UN-backed government in Tripoli, has long cultivated close relations with Moscow and relies heavily on Russian mercenary group Wagner for military support.

The authorities in eastern Libya want to rebuild the town of Derna as quickly as possible, nearly two weeks after a flash flood destroyed more than 20 percent of the Libyan port city.

Hundreds of people have protested in the eastern Libyan city of Derna, venting anger against authorities and demanding accountability one week after a flood killed thousands of residents and destroyed entire neighbourhoods.

The UN system is providing aid to areas in eastern Libya impacted by the weekend floods and a disaster assessment team has been deployed to support government response and relief operations, the UN said on Wednesday.