Rival Libyan factions announce unity government

PanARMENIAN.Net - Rival Libyan factions have announced a unity government aimed at stemming the chaos that has engulfed the country since a 2011 uprising toppled Muammar Gaddafi, the Guardian reports.

The Unity Presidential Council said it had agreed on a 32-member cabinet with members drawn from across the country, as part of a UN-backed process.

The council includes representatives from Libya’s two rival parliaments – one which meets in the capital, Tripoli, and the other in the far east – as well as delegates from other factions.

Other members of the main factions have rejected the UN process.

It was not clear where the new government would be based or whether it could govern the oil-rich north African country. The Unity Presidential Council meets in neighboring Tunisia.

Since the NATO-backed revolt ousted Gaddafi, the turmoil in Libya has deepened, with the two rival governments and a range of armed factions locked in a struggle for control of the Opec state and its oil wealth.

In the chaos, Islamic State militants have grown in strength. Earlier this month, they claimed responsibility for the suicide bombing of a Libyan police training center that killed at least 47 people. They now control the city of Sirte and are targeting Tripoli and the country’s oil infrastructure.