A top Libyan military commander whose forces control the country’s eastern regions has endorsed the reopening of the coastal highway along the Mediterranean Sea linking Libya’s long-divided east and west.
The resumption of traffic along the artery would be a significant step toward unifying Libya’s warring sides. U.N. deputy spokesman Farhan Haq confirmed later on Friday that the highway had reopened.
The 1,800 kilometer-long highway links the capital of Tripoli to the west with the city of Benghazi to the east. It has been closed since April 2019 when Commander Khalifa Hifter launched a military offensive to capture Tripoli from the U.N.-recognized government.
Hifter’s campaign ultimately failed in June 2020, after which U.N.-sponsored peace talks brought about a cease-fire and installed an interim government that’s expected to lead the country into general elections in December.
The same deal inked in October also stipulated that all foreign forces and mercenaries — which support different sides in the conflict — withdraw from Libya in three months, a provision that has not been met.
In June, Libya’s interim authorities had announced the reopening of the road and held a ceremony near Tripoli where Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibah was filmed while riding a bulldozer to tow away roadblocks.
However, it remained unclear whether the road would become fully functional amid objections to the reopening by militias that control parts of it.
The reopening was a long-held demand by the U.N. to enable the safe passage of civilians and goods. Hifter’s endorsement came shortly after a U.N.-backed joint military committee representing the warring factions announced the road would reopen on Friday morning and that a subsidiary committee would be in charge of securing it.
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