UN envoy for Libya hails accord on new transitional phase

The UN secretary-general's special representative for Libya, Bernardino Leon, on Friday welcomed the agreement among the House of Representatives delegation to address the north African country's new transitional phase, a UN spokesman told reporters here.

Speaking to the press earlier Friday in Morocco, where the UN-facilitated talks have been taking place, Leon said that "the agreement is a strong message that all parties involved in the dialogue process can solve their differences politically," UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said at a daily news briefing here.

Moving forward, the UN envoy said that he expects the General National Congress to return to Morocco on Friday so that "the parties can resume the final stage of the dialogue to reach an inclusive agreement by the 20th of September," the spokesman added.

Last Thursday, Leon said that the latest round of peace talks launched in Morocco could prove to be the "moment of truth."

Libya, torn apart since dictator Muammar Gaddafi's ouster in 2011, has two rival administrations -- a body in Tripoli known as the General National Congress (GNC) and an internationally recognised government based in Tobruk in the far east.

Leon's peace plan calls for an accord to be reached by Sept. 20, ahead of the United Nations General Assembly, with the government coming into force a month later.

A two-year transitional government would work towards organising parliamentary elections, under the terms being discussed.

Leon said a deal on creating a unity government could be reached "in the coming days", but that difficult work remained before a final accord.

The rising influence of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group in Libya and the country's emergence as a smuggling hub for migrants risking their lives to cross the Mediterranean have added urgency to the long-running and often derailed UN talks. Enditem