The Minister of Oil and Gas, Mohamed Aoun, confirmed in media statements that he was removed from the Government of National Unity because of his firm national stance on matters that do not align with Libya’s supreme interests and his refusal of anything that does not comply with the country’s laws, regulations, and guidelines.

Aoun pointed to the recent court ruling he obtained, which halted the implementation of Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh’s decision to assign Khalifa Abdul Sadiq to manage the ministry’s tasks. Despite the court ruling and the reinstatement of Aoun to his position, Dbeibeh did not respond to Aoun’s communications, nor his attempts to reach him in various ways, clarifying that Dbeibeh remains committed to keeping Abdul Sadiq in place.

Aoun stated, “I was hopeful that the Prime Minister would respond to the voice of justice, to the call of duty and the law, and what aligns with the supreme interests of the Libyan state, and that he would cancel the assignment issued to Abdulsadiq to manage the ministry’s tasks.”

Aoun explained that his decision to step back from the scene was due to the Prime Minister’s lack of response to his demands, coinciding with the decision by the Attorney General’s Office to imprison Minister Khalifa Abdul Sadiq and his office director over administrative violations in a case involving breaches that almost cost the ministry nearly $500 million.

Aoun directed a call to the House of Representatives, the High Council of State, the Presidential Council, the heads of the Supreme Court and the Supreme Judicial Council, the Attorney General, and the Head of the Administrative Control Authority to uphold the rule of law, enforce judicial rulings, and stop the ongoing deterioration in the reputation of the National Oil Corporation, which has reached unprecedented levels due to corruption and legal violations in the oil sector.

Minister Aoun concluded by saying, “We are certainly entitled to reaffirm our previous demand, as stated in our earlier declaration, which is that it is the duty of Dbeibeh to immediately correct the situation by issuing an order canceling the assignment of Khalifa Abdul Sadiq, in respect of the court’s ruling.”