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Signing of political accord on Libya to take place Thursday in Morocco: UN envoy

Xinhua, December 17, 2015 Adjust font size:

The special representative of the UN secretary-general for Libya, Martin Kobler, on Wednesday said that the signing of the Libyan Political Agreement is due to take place Thursday in Morocco, a UN spokesman told reporters here.

The signing comes as agreed to by the Libyan political dialogue participants and as welcomed by the UN Security Council and by the ministerial meeting held in Rome of Italy Sunday, the spokesman said.

"Mr. Kobler said that the signing ceremony has been scheduled for 17 December and a large number of Libyan participants and high-level international participants, including many foreign ministers, have committed to attend," the spokesman said. "The UN continues to encourage all Libyan efforts to end the current divisions through inclusive dialogue."

World powers on Sunday concluded a new round of talks in Rome aimed at ending the violence and political chaos in Libya, pledging to support the UN-brokered peace plan.

The ministerial-level conference was intended to fuel the momentum of the warring Libyan sides, who agreed on a Dec. 16 deadline to sign a final peace deal, thus stipulating the goal of a steady political transition and forming a national unity government.

Diplomats from 17 countries, including the United States, China, Russia, Britain and France, issued a joint statement, saying "a government of National Accord based in the capital Tripoli is urgently needed to provide Libya the means to maintain governance, promote stability and economic development."

Libya has been suffering a political crisis with two rival parliaments and governments battling for legitimacy amid a state of insecurity and anarchy years after the downfall of the late leader Muammar Gaddafi.

The elected parliament House of Representatives (HOR) is now on exile in the eastern city of Tobruk and the self-proclaimed General National Congress (GNC), backed by militia Libya Dawn, occupied the capital Tripoli.

A meeting happened between the president of the House of Representatives, Agila Saleh Essa Gwaider, and the president of the General National Congress, Nouri Abusahmain, in Malta Tuesday, said the UN spokesman, quoting Kobler.

The split government in Libya has lasted for more than a year. Libya's major public sectors also opened two branches and might further deepen the division.

The United Nations has sponsored dialogue sessions between Libyan rivals since September 2014, in and outside Libya, in order to end the country's political division.

A deal seems imminent to end the defacto anarchy and the security vacuum that has given rise to extremist groups including the Islamic State the extremist group. Endit