Ankara backs UN plan for Libya, envoy says

Turkey backs a U.N. plan to resume the political process in Libya, the Turkish envoy to the North African state said Friday.

Emrullah İşler, who is also a lawmaker with Turkey's ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party), said Ankara would stand against any foreign intervention in Libya.

"We, as Turkey, are supporting the U.N.'s attempt [to restart Libya's political process] and we stand against foreign intervention," İşler, who recently returned from a two-day visit to Libya, told Anadolu Agency (AA).

He added: "We will support Libyans for the settlement of democracy in Libya, for the establishment of institutions and for the conduct of democratic elections."

Last month, Ghassan Salame, the U.N. special envoy for Libya, unveiled a road map for resolving the conflict between Libya's rival power centers and terror groups such as Daesh. Salame's plan is aimed at securing a transition toward a unified, representative government under the framework of the 2015 Skhirat Agreement.

The plan, which calls for holding parliamentary and presidential elections within a year, was endorsed by the U.N. Security Council on Tuesday. Gaddafi's ouster in 2011 destabilized the country and led to fighting between heavily-armed militia groups.