ADDIS ABABA: Having expressed deep concern over the security situation in Libya, the African Union (AU) high-level committee on Libya has condemned the additional inflow of arms into the country.
The committee has wrapped up its 5th meeting at the AU headquarters in Ethiopia’s capital Addis Ababa, according to a statement from the pan-African bloc on Thursday.
Having noted that Libya has more than 20 million pieces of weapons and hardly needs anymore, the participants of the meeting has urged all regional and international actors to stop arms supply in line with the relevant UN Security Council resolutions.
They have further called upon international stakeholders to positively engage all concerned so as to support a political resolution in the country.
They have underscored the imperative that the assets of Libya remain frozen with a professional management in order to prevent their depreciation and eventual loss and guarantee the right of the Sate of Libya to this effect.
Libya has been embroiled in a civil war after the fall and death of longtime leader Muammer Gadhafi in 2011.
The meeting has expressed concern over the deteriorating situation in Sabha, in southern Libya.
The participants of the meeting have reaffirmed full support for the unity of Libya and condemned any act that can lead to divisions based on ethnicity or tribal affiliations.
The participants noted with deep concern the proliferation of armed groups and criminal activities in the South of Libya.
They expressed the need for a tailored engagement strategy, including through convening of a meeting with key stakeholders in that region.
A tripartite task force of the AU, the European Union (EU), and the United Nations (UN) has been endeavoring to support stranded African migrants in Libya, while consolidating efforts to dismantle organized networks of human traffickers and migrant smugglers.
In his opening remarks of the meeting on Tuesday, Moussa Faki Mahamat, chairperson of the AU Commission, told the meeting that the situation in Libya is “morally intolerable.”
The participants of the meeting have reaffirmed their total rejection of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, and strongly condemned terrorist and external rebel groups operating in Libya, and their criminal activities.
They have reiterated their conviction that there can be no military solution to the conflict in Libya, and once again, stressed to Libyan stakeholders the imperative of engaging in an inclusive AU-UN proposed national reconciliation conference so that Libyans will be the owners of their own political process and destiny.
Expressing support for the UN-led political dialogue, the meeting has stressed the need to create conducive political and security conditions for the conduct of the envisaged elections in Libya, including promotion of national reconciliation and dialogue.
It has called for the convening of a national reconciliation conference, under the auspices of the AU and UN.
The meeting has underlined the importance of the role of the neighboring countries of Libya in the search for a lasting solution, noting the regional impact of the crisis, particularly in terms of security, flow of arms and migrants.
The participants have welcomed the efforts towards building a unified national army of Libya and to address the security situation in the South of the country.
They have called for continuous efforts to ensure effective coordination between the AU and the UN, within the framework of the partnership between the two organizations in the area of peace and security.