UN Envoy to Libya: Failure is Not an Option

The UN envoy to Libya, Abdullah Batili, stated on Monday that the electoral laws proposed by a committee from the country's legislative councils this month are "insufficient to resolve the most contentious issues and to enable a successful election." Batili emphasized before the UN Security Council that a failure to reach an agreement among the competing parties in Libya could "lead to a new crisis." He urged the council to pressure the key parties to reach a consensus and noted that the proposed laws involve contentious matters such as the dispute over the eligibility of presidential candidates and the requirement to form a new interim government before any voting. He pointed out that the stipulation for a second round of voting even if a candidate wins more than half of the votes, as well as the cancellation of parliamentary elections if the first round of the presidential election fails, are also contentious issues. Batili’s comments came just hours after the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aguila Saleh, stated that most of the proposed laws are good and will lead to elections. Libya has not experienced significant stability or security since the 2011 uprising supported by NATO, and the country has been divided since 2014 between rival eastern and western factions, although there has been no major fighting since the ceasefire in 2020.