LNA Ready To Resume Ceasefire Talks, UN To Set Date, Format - Spokesman

(@FahadShabbir)

LNA Ready to Resume Ceasefire Talks, UN to Set Date, Format - Spokesman

The Libyan National Army (LNA) led by Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar is ready to resume talks on a ceasefire with the rival Government of National Accord (GNA), LNA spokesman and Moral Guidance Department Head Brig. Gen. Khaled Mahjoub told Sputnik Tuesday, adding that the United Nations would determine negotiations' format and date

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 02nd June, 2020) The Libyan National Army (LNA) led by Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar is ready to resume talks on a ceasefire with the rival Government of National Accord (GNA), LNA spokesman and Moral Guidance Department Head Brig. Gen. Khaled Mahjoub told Sputnik Tuesday, adding that the United Nations would determine negotiations' format and date.

Earlier in the day, the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) announced that Libya's warring parties, the eastern-based LNA and the western-based GNA, had agreed to resume ceasefire talks in the Libyan Joint Military Commission's (JMC) 5+5 format according to a draft deal submitted by the UN during the second round of the JMS's negotiations on February 23.

"Yes, we continue working on all fronts," Mahjoub said, when asked whether the LNA informed the UN of its readiness to participate in a political dialogue.

The UN would define a format of the LNA-GNA meeting whether it was a video conference or face-to-face talks, the spokesman added, noting that the LNA did not know an exact date of the negotiations.

"The issue [a meeting's date] is being addressed by the United Nations," Mahjoub said.

After the ouster and assassination of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, the country was plunged into a brutal civil war. Today, Libya is divided between two centers of power � an elected parliament in the country's east, supported by the LNA and the UN-backed GNA in the west, headed by Fayez Sarraj.

In early February, the 5+5 JMC, comprised of five senior military officers from each side, started negotiations under UN auspices in Geneva. The second round of the JMC negotiations ended on February 23. As a result, the warring parties agreed to a draft deal that should pave the way for a lasting ceasefire in Libya and allow the safe return of civilians to their homes under the auspices of UNSMIL.

The talks were moderated by UNSMIL head and then-UN Special Representative to Libya Ghassan Salame, who resigned in early March. Following this event, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres appointed Stephanie Turco Williams as Acting Special Representative to Libya and head of UNSMIL on March 11.