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Cairo prepares for meeting between Haftar and Al-Serraj
 [LIBYANEXPRESS] According to high-profile Egyptian sources, Cairo will host a meeting between the leader of the Operation Dignity, Khalifa Haftar... served in the Libyan army under Muammar Qadaffy, and took part in the coup that brought Qadaffy to power in 1969. He became a prisoner of war in Chad in 1987. While held prisoner, he and his fellow officers formed a group hoping to overthrow Qadaffy. He was released around 1990 in a deal with the United States government and spent nearly two decades in the United States, gaining US citizenship. In 1993, while living in the United States, he was convicted in absentia of crimes against the Jamahiriya and sentenced to death. Haftar held a senior position in the anti-Qadaffy forces in the 2011 Libyan Civil War. In 2014 he was commander of the Libyan Army when the General National Congress (GNC) refused to give up power in accordance with its term of office. Haftar launched a campaign against the GNC and its Islamic fundamentalist allies. His campaign allowed elections to take place to replace the GNC, but then developed into a civil war. Guess you can't win them all... , and the Prime Minister of the UN-backed Government of National Accord (GNA) Fayez al-Serraj. "the meeting will try to build bridges between the two parties and will aim at finding a solution for the Libyan political crisis." The sources added. Upon his last visit to Cairo, days ago, Haftar express willingness to sit with al-Serraj, the sources said on Saturday, adding that al-Serraj said he supports removing (Article No. 8) from the Libyan Political Agreement. Article No. 8 is related to appointment of high-ranking and supreme military positions in the Libyan government. The sources also said that Egypt is trying to bridge the gap among the conflicting parties in Libya so that the country retrieves its stability soon. Headed by the Egyptian Foreign Minister, Sameh Sokri, a meeting for the neighbouring countries of Libya kicked off in Cairo Saturday to try to find a suitable and common ground among Libya’s political factions so that they can all agree on implementing the Skhirat agreement. Posted by: Fred 2017-01-22 |
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