Libyan parties committed to forming national unity gov't

Libya's rival parliaments agreed here on Tuesday to back the formation of a national unity government as a first step toward the ultimate goal of restoring peace and reconciliation in their war-torn nation.

After the second round of UN-sponsored inter-Libyan dialogue which was hosted in Algiers, the UN envoy to Libya Bernardino Leon said significant progress has been reached.

"We have examined together the UN-proposed roadmap and I have noticed a great convergence over it," Bernardino told reporters.

"There has not been an agreement over all the points of this document, but one thing is sure is that the main principles of the text have been accepted and all we have to do now is working on details," he said.

Abdul Hafiz Ghoga, former vice speaker of the Libyan National Congress, told reporters that "the Algiers meeting is the most important so far, because it proposed practical solution to the Libyan crisis."

Libya has been witnessing frayed political process since the 2011 turmoil which toppled its former leader Muammar Gaddafi.

The country is now juggling with two rival parliaments, the internationally recognized House of Representatives and the Islamist-backed General National Congress.

Forces loyal to the two major factions have been warring with each other in cities including Tripoli, Benghazi and Gharyan, causing a humanitarian crisis with at least 120,000 people forced to leave their homes, as well as consequent shortages of food and medical supplies along with mounting casualties.

The UN has held several rounds of dialogue between the conflicting parties since September 2014, but clashes continued despite an agreed truce. Endit