Tanker to Ship Oil at Libya’s Al-Harika Port
Al-Harika oil port received Thursday Nordic oil tanker to ship one million barrels of crude oil.
Author: LS
U.N. says Libya sides reach ceasefire deal
Libya’s warring sides signed an agreement for a permanent ceasefire in all areas of the country on Friday, months after frontlines stabilised following a failed eastern assault on the capital Tripoli.
The accord, concluded in Geneva after talks between military representatives of the internationally recognised Government of National Accord (GNA) and Khalifa Haftar’s eastern-based Libyan National Army (LNA), will be followed by political discussions in Tunisia next month.
“The road was long and difficult at times. Your patriotism was your way forward and you were able to reach a ceasefire agreement,” acting Libya envoy Stephanie Williams said after the signing ceremony.
Williams added in a live broadcast after the signing that she hoped the deal would allow displaced people and refugees to return to their homes.
Libya’s warring sides to sign ceasefire deal on Friday: U.N.
Libya’s warring sides, who have held ceasefire talks in Geneva, were on Friday poised to sign an agreement, a U.N. spokesman said.
The signing ceremony at U.N. European headquarters in Geneva was set for O9:15 GMT, to be followed by a midday press conference by U.N. acting envoy Stephanie Williams.
Williams said on Wednesday that she was “quite optimistic” that ongoing talks between the warring sides would lead to a lasting ceasefire, after they agreed to reopen land and air routes across front lines.
Official source reveals price of flights between Mitiga and Benina Airports
An official source working within Buraq Air revealed to Sada newspaper the price of flights from Mitiga to Benina Airports after the resumption of its domestic flights between both regions.
” An average cost of 350 LYD per round trip, and 190 LYD per outward journey. A round trip for children who have not exceeded the age of 12 costs 277 LYD, while outward journey costs 149 LYD.” He said.
It will be reminded that the company stated through its account on Facebook that flights between Mitiga Airport of Tripoli and Benina Airport in Benghazi will resume on Sunday by two flights per day, confirming that reservations would be open to travelers through the company’s offices.
Khaled Al Mishri highlights the importance of the Skhirat Agreement
The head of Libya’s High Council of State, Khaled Al Mishri, reemphasized the centrality of the Skhirat Agreement during a meeting with Morocco’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Nasser Bourita on Wednesday in Rabat.
In a statement to the press following the meeting with Bourita, Al Mishri said the agreement remains the only document to which one can refer for the resolution of the Libyan crisis.
Al Mishri added that the latest UN Security Council resolution considers the Skhirat Agreement to be a reference in Libya’s crisis resolution efforts.
The agreement between Libya’s rival factions is in line with Article 15 of the Skhirat Political Agreement.
New Coronavirus cases bring Libya’s total to 52,620
995 new cases of Coronavirus were registered in Libya, according to the National Center for Disease Control (NCDC).
The NCDC announced in a statement on its official Facebook page that 617 new recoveries had been registered, in addition to 3 deaths due to COVID-19.
This brings the total number of the pandemic cases in Libya to 52,620, including 22,795 active cases, 29,0572 recoveries, and 768 deaths.
UNSMIL condemns the arrest of Mohamed Baaio
UNSMIL deplored the recent unlawful arrest of the Head of the Libyan Media Corporation, Mr Mohamed Omar Baaio. The Mission calls for his immediate and unconditional release.
Mr Baaio was arrested on 20 October along with his two sons and the newly appointed head of programmes at the Libya al-Wataniya TV channel, Ms Hind Ammar. UNSMIL was notified that the two sons were released soon after the arrest, while Ms Ammar was released last night.
The UNSMIL said that this latest round of arbitrary arrests highlights the personal risks journalists take to promote the right to freedom of expression in Libya.
Libya, Tunisia reach preliminary agreement to reopen airspace, land borders
The Libyan Foreign Ministry of the Government of National Accord (GNA) has announced agreeing with Tunisia on reopening air space for flights between the two countries and reopening land borders for travelers as well.
The Foreign Ministry said the two countries’ relevant authorities would work on forming a protocol that organizes the process of reopening air space and land borders.
The GNA’s Foreign Ministry indicated that deputy minister Mahmoud Al-Tillisi as well as other officials met with Tunisian officials on Wednesday and agreed on resuming flights and land travels between the two countries.
The Libyan Audit Bureau files corruption cases at two Libyan embassies
The Head of Libya’s Audit Bureau in Tripoli Khalid Shakshak sent reports to the Attorney General about corruption cases at the Libyan embassies in Vatican city and Italy.
According to a statement by the Bureau on Wednesday, the financial violations office of the Audit Bureau filed cases of embezzlement at the two embassies.
The Audit Bureau said officials at the two embassies had taken state funds for their own use and for others, in addition to transferring money from the embassies’ financial allocations to persons not working at the embassies. They also withdrew cash from the embassies’ bank accounts.
The Audit Bureau asked the Presidential Council to request the retrieval of the funds from the Italian government as per the UN anti-corruption agreement that helps countries regain embezzled money.
Ahmed Maiteeg: Libyan sides to soon work on a consolidated budget
Libya’s warring parties will soon start working to produce a single, consolidated state budget as part of efforts to find an agreement between them, the deputy head of the Tripoli-based government has told Reuters in an interview.
“Today we are looking to unify the budget so that the spending channel becomes one channel” between the two sides, said Ahmed Maiteeg, deputy prime minister in the internationally recognised Government of National Accord (GNA).
In September, Maiteeg struck an agreement with the GNA’s rival, Khalifa Haftar, head of the eastern-based Libyan National Army (LNA), to end its eight-month blockade of oil output and exports with a deal to review how revenue was shared.
The OPEC member’s oil production reached 500,000 barrels per day (bpd) this week and will rise to 550,000-560,000 bpd by the end of October and 1 million bpd by the end of the year, Maiteeg said.
All Libyan energy is produced by Libya’s National Oil Corporation (NOC) with revenue funnelled through the Tripoli-based central bank. The GNA pays for the work of state institutions and salaries of many public employees across front lines.
However, the rival eastern-based administration in Benghazi has largely financed the LNA’s war effort, accumulating billions of dollars in debt. Both sides have agreed to an external audit process for their finances, which started this year.
The GNA has prepared a budget for 2021 that is expected to be 45 billion-48 billion dinars ($38 billion-40 billion) including the funds for health, education and other public services across the country, Maiteeg said.
He added that he expected eastern side to present a forecast budget of 5 billion-8 billion dinars.
“Then the delicate technical work will begin, which is to unify these two budgets until one budget comes out,” he said.
“It is the backbone of the agreement (with the eastern side) – the consolidation of the budget, not percentages of oil revenues,” he said.