The head of Libya’s Unity Government, Abdulhamid Dbaiba, declared on Sunday that the main coast road across its inactive front line reopened, but eastern-based forces allowed no traffic through, underscoring unresolved divisions that threaten a fragile peace process.

Dbeibeh removed a mound of sand blocking the road at the final checkpoint on the western side of front line, before driving eastwards with his convoy towards Sirte, held by eastern forces.

“We will meet soon in Sirte,” he said, referring to the city just across the front line further down the desert road as he opened its western end.

It comes days before international powers meet in Berlin to discuss the Libya crisis and progress towards unifying the country’s fragmented institutions and holding elections planned for December.