Libya's council urges Parliament-appointed premier to resign

TRIPOLI, Libya

Head of the Libya’s High Council of State, Khalid al-Mishri, on Wednesday called on parliament-appointed Prime Minister Fathi Bashaga to resign.

His call came one day after Bashagha arrived in the capital Tripoli to take control of the government from Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh, who has refused to hand over power.

His visit, however, triggered clashes between rival armed groups in Tripoli, forcing Bashagha to leave the Libyan capital.

"I reject the attempt of Bashagha and his government to enter Tripoli,” al-Mishri told the local Libya Al-Ahrar TV channel.

He ruled out that the Bashagha and Dbeibeh governments will not be able to hold elections, even after five years.

“We recommend Bashagha to submit his resignation and Dbeibeh to accept the change,” he said. “We should agree on a constitutional basis and a mini-Cabinet whose purpose will be to hold elections."

Al-Mishri said that the Dbeibeh’s government will not be able to hold elections because its influence is limited to Tripoli and some cities.

For more than two months, there have been two governments in Libya: the national unity government led by Dbeibeh and the one granted confidence in early March by the Tobruk-based House of Representatives.

Dbeibeh has previously said he would only cede authority to a government that comes through an “elected parliament,” raising fears that the oil-rich country could slip back into a civil war.

*Writing by Mahmoud Barakat