Libyan government, Haftar forces accept UN-backed Eid al-Adha ceasefire

The Libyan government and forces loyal to rogue General Haftar have both accepted proposals by the UN for a ceasefire in Tripoli for the Eid holiday.

MENA

1 min read

The New Arab & agencies

10 August, 2019

Spokesman Ahmed Al-Mesmari said that Haftar's forces would abide by a UN-proposed ceasefire [Getty]

Rogue Libyan General Khalifa Haftar's forces agreed on Saturday to a UN-backed truce around the capital Tripoli to mark the Islamic festival of Eid al-Adha, Haftar's spokesman said.

Haftar's forces "announce a halt to all military operations... in the suburbs of Tripoli," Ahmad al-Mesmari said at a press conference in the eastern city of Benghazi.

Haftar's self-styled Libyan National Army has been fighting since early April to seize Tripoli from the country's UN-backed unity government.

Earlier on Saturday, the government said that it had accepted the UN's ceasefire proposals.

The truce had originally been proposed by the UN envoy to Libya, Ghassan Salame, on July 31.

In a statement, the Libyan government said that the ceasefire, "will allow humanitarian workers to provide services to refugees and those affected by fighting and maintenance teams to repair damage to infrastructure, including electricity towers and lines."

More than 1,100 people have been killed since the beginning of Haftar’s offensive against Tripoli and over 100,000 people have been displaced. Recent airstrikes by Haftar’s air force have killed dozens of civilians.

On Saturday, a car bomb outside a busy shopping mall in Benghazi killed two UN workers.

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