Third Force of Misrata Military Council expressed its resentment over the decision taken by Libya’s Head of Presidency Council Fayez Al Sarraj to suspend his Minister of Defense Al Mahdy Al Barghathy, describing the decision as an attempt from the Libyan leader to acquit himself from the massacre committed against the members of Libyan National Army.

The Third Force published a document on its page on Facebook revealing that they received order from Barghathy to cleanse Brak Al-Shatti airbase from the elements of Haftar’s army.

The State Council (SC) has condemned the Presidency Council’s (PC) suspension of defence minister Mahmoud Barghati without waiting for the result of the enquiry it has ordered into the Brak Al-Shatti massacre.

It said that the PC had acted in an irresponsible rush. It added that the action against Barghati chimed with the “demands of parties rejecting the political agreement and its media campaigns financed by regional countries”.  Its statement, put out yesterday, continued that these parties wished to abort or completely destroy the process of national reconciliation.

The SC then launched a wider attack of Faiez Serraj and the PC saying it was unable to provide basic services to citizens but was preoccupied with the appointment of administrators for investment and financial institutions, an apparent reference to the management of the Libyan Investment Authority and the Central Bank of Libya.

It condemned the PC’s “unjustified failure to issue decisions regarding the leadership positions of the military establishment stipulated in the political agreement”. However, it can be agued that the PC does not yet have that power.  The transfer of ultimate authority over the armed forces from the House of Representatives (HoR) to the PC is the key dispute that has stopped

parliament from voting on the Libyan Political Agreement (LPA).  It could equally be maintained that until the LPA is signed off by the HoR, the State Council itself lacks legal standing.

The SC also accused Serraj of not being committed to the text and spirit of the political agreement. It cited Mohamed Siala whose has chosen not to return to Tripoli since his reference in Tunis to Khalifa Hafter as commander of the Libyan army.  Serraj, said the Siala had since gone with Siala on foreign visits “despite the irregularities and abuses that have caused serious damage to national accord”, a reference to the uproar in the west caused by Siala’s Hafter comment. It said it was astonished that Siala was still in post and that Serraj had taken no action against him.

On the other hand, The three-day Geneva dialogue meeting involving a wide cross-section of Libyan key players ended today with a call for an end to military escalation in the country. It was in response to yesterday’s massacre at Brak Al-Shatti. Libyan lives had against been “wasted”, a statement read. In the statement, the delegates noted that the aim of their meeting had been precisely to avoid such tragedies in future.

Issued by the organizers, the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue (HD), it noted that discussions over the three days had covered proposals on creating stability in Libya, the security of the country’s resources, support for its sovereign institutions and ensuring that they were free from political and regional divisions. Also discussed were support for the local authorities, the country’s humanitarian needs and the creation of effective state institutions. It was the second such roundtable gathering organized by HD, the first being last October. HD says it will continue to try to help find solutions to Libya’s crisis.

Source: Timesofoman