Libya's U.N.-backed Government of National Accord (GNA) said Tuesday it welcomes all political initiatives aimed at finding a peaceful solution to the current fighting and preventing bloodshed in the war-ravaged country.
Fayez al-Sarraj, head of Libya's official government, in a statement called on all Libyan parties to swiftly resume political dialogue, brokered by the United Nations.
He called for an agreement on a comprehensive road map and a political process that would bring together all Libyans, either through amending a 2015 political agreement, forming a presidential council and naming a separate prime minister, or conducting a general election in the near future.
The call comes as the suffering of Libyans has worsened recently due to the spread of the novel coronavirus and continued attacks on the Libyan capital Tripoli and other cities by eastern-based putschist Gen. Khalifa Haftar.
The Libyan government has been under attack by Haftar's forces since April 2019, with more than 1,000 killed in the violence. It launched Operation Peace Storm on March 26 to counter attacks on the capital.
Late last month, warlord Haftar unilaterally declared himself the ruler of Libya, claiming that he "accepted the mandate of the Libyan people" and terming the Skhirat agreement of 2015 "a thing of the past." The agreement was signed in 2015 in Morocco, forming the GNA to manage the transition process in Libya.
The Libyan army has recently made gains against Haftar's militias, which are supported by France, Russia, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt.
Following the ouster of late ruler Moammar Gadhafi in 2011, Libya's government was founded in 2015 under a U.N.-led political deal.
