TRIPOLI -Libya’s interim prime minister Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah registered as a candidate for the presidency on Sunday despite having vowed not to do so as a condition of taking his current post and despite contested election rules that may prevent him from standing. Parliamentary and presidential elections on Dec. 24 were demanded by a U.N. political forum last year as part of a roadmap to end Libya’s civil war, a process that also led to the formation of Dbeibah’s interim unity government. Libya has had little stability since the 2011 NATO-backed uprising that ousted Muammar Gaddafi as the country fragmented among myriad armed groups. As prime minister, he has pledged investment in Libyan regions that suffered neglect during the past decade of chaos, agreed major contracts with countries involved on both sides of the civil war and courted young people with financial support. His best-known rivals include Gaddafi’s son and one-time heir apparent Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, the commander of the eastern forces in the civil war Khalifa Haftar, and Saleh himself.

Source: Libya Today November 22, 2021 18:10 UTC