Libya lawmakers meet to coordinate roadmap after elections delayed

Lawmakers in the Libyan capital of Tripoli began talks on Sunday on the future of their government, more than a month after the country failed to hold its first presidential election.

The First Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Fawzi Al-Nuiri, invited deputies to the meeting to "coordinate efforts on the roadmap".

The meeting between 46 deputies came before a session on Monday, in which the Libyan House of Representatives will discuss choosing a new prime minister.

Al-Nuiri said in a news conference, held after the meeting, that the session aims to create a state of consensus with all Libyan parties in order to move forward within a roadmap that will prioritize elections and the constitutional base.

There are also plans to choose the executive authority, complete national reconciliation, unify the nation's security by arresting armed groups and evacuating all foreign forces from the country, he said.

Meanwhile, the head of the High Council of State in Libya, Khaled Al-Mashri, called on the House of Representatives to adopt an integrated roadmap for the next stage, warning that a decision to change the executive authority unilaterally would "lead to the birth of a dead government."

Libya plunged into turmoil after a NATO-backed uprising in 2011 toppled dictator Moammar Gadhafi, who was later killed.

It then became divided between rival governments - one in the east, backed by Hifter, and a U.N.-supported administration in the capital Tripoli, each supported by different militias and foreign powers.

In April 2019, Hifter and his forces, backed by Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, launched an offensive to try and capture Tripoli.

His campaign collapsed after Turkey stepped up its military support of the U.N.-supported government with hundreds of troops and thousands of Syrian mercenaries.

An October 2020 ceasefire agreement called for the withdrawal of all foreign forces from Libya and led to an agreement on a transitional government in early February 2021.

Elections that were supposed to be held on Dec. 24 have been delayed.