New Libyan political dialogue to resume

The UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) on Sunday announced that a new round of UN-facilitated Libyan political dialogue will resume in Geneva on Monday.

In addition to the main political track which will resume on Monday, another meeting later in the week will bring together municipal and local council representatives from cities and towns across Libya to discuss confidence-building measures and ways to implement them, according a UNSMIL statement on its website.

UNSMIL plans to convene a number of other tracks at a later stage, which will include representatives from Libyan political parties, social and tribal forces, as well as the armed groups, the statement added.

The dialogue kicked off on Jan. 14 in the UN headquarters in Geneva, under the auspices of Bernandino Leon, special envoy of the UN secretary-general.

However, Libya's outgoing Islamist-backed parliament, the General National Congress (GNC), decided on Wednesday to suspend its participation in the UN-sponsored political dialogue until further notice due to the escalation of military operations in the eastern city of Benghazi.

Libya dawn militias, who supported the GNC, also refused to hold the dialogue in Geneva, claiming that it was "suspicious and aimed to implement foreign agenda and promote the conflict in Libya."

After the downfall of former Libyan Muammar Gaddafi, the country is now deadlocked in turmoil with two rival governments and two parliaments backed by secular and Islamist forces respectively.

Armed forces affiliated to the two sides have been warring since May, leaving at least 1,000 people killed and more than 100,000 displaced.

The UN talks aimed at ending the current political crisis through a truce and a united government. In September, the first round of talks was held to bring together factions to the border oasis town of Ghadames, but the GNC did not participate. Endit