UN envoy urges non-interferance in Libya
Salamé made the call while addressing newsmen after a closed-door meeting of the UN Security Council that focused on the conflict in the Iraq and other parts of the Middle East.
The UN envoy said Libya was suffering from increasing foreign interference in the factional conflict, which has been lingering since the death of its former dictator Muammar Gadaffi in 2011.
He suggested that some members of the Security Council themselves were involved in the act, and were violating the Libya arms embargo imposed by the council.
He said: “What I asked the Security Council, and what I asked these countries, is very clear: keep out of Libya.
“There are enough weapons in Libya; they do not need extra weapons.
“There are enough mercenaries in Libya, so stop sending mercenaries as is the case right now with hundreds, possibly thousands, coming into the country of late.
“There is a resolution calling for an arms embargo in Libya.
“Those who voted for this resolution are necessarily in need to implement it.
“If everybody violates the arms embargo, it’s a problem.
“But if those who voted for it are violating it, it’s an even bigger problem.’’
The meeting came shortly after a drone attack on a military academy in the capital, Tripoli, left several people dead at the weekend.
Salamé said that the attack on the military academy was the latest in a series of recent aerial bombings in the capaital and environs.
Describing the current situation in Libya as “particularly difficult and bleak”, the envoy said ordinary people were paying dearly, with dozens of schools closed, health facilities attacked, and thousands displaced.
Earlier in the day, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged parties to conflicts to deescalate tensions and embrace dialogue.
“I have been following the recent rise in global tensions with great concern.
“I am in constant contact with leading officials around the world.
“And my message is simple and clear: stop escalation, exercise maximum restraint, restart dialogue, renew international cooperation.
“Let us not forget the terrible human suffering caused by war.
“As always, ordinary people pay the highest price.
“It is our common duty to avoid it,” the UN chief told newsmen in New York. .
According to Salamé, there is no military solution to the conflict, which can potentially have an impact on fragile neighbouring countries. (NAN)
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