On Friday evening, the Commander in Chief of the Libyan National Army (LNA), Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, held a meeting with the Parliamentary Speaker, Ageela Saleh, at the latter’s house in Al-Quba city.
The talk was attended by the First Deputy Prime Minister of the Interim Government of National Unity (GNU), Hussein Al-Qatrani.
In a briefing statement, the LNA General Command said that Haftar and Saleh discussed the latest political developments in the North African country.
This meeting comes at the same time as the international community and the United Nations (UN) call to speed up the reopening of the coastal road, especially after the 5 + 5 Joint Military Commission (JMC) announced that it had not yet been able to solve this issue, threatening to reveal names of the spoilers.
It also came after a previously scheduled visit to Benghazi by the Prime Minister Abdelhamid Dbaiba was canceled after a number of protesters had refused to allow the GNU’s ministerial delegation to land in the second-largest city in Libya.
Later, the LNA announced its readiness to secure any meeting of the GNU and to ensure the safety of high-level delegations in any region of eastern Libya.
It also confirmed that this will be in coordination with the Ministry of Interior and its agencies in Benghazi for protection and security. The General Command rejected the transfer of security forces from cities controlled by militias.
In the statement, the LNA explained that security prevails in eastern Libya, thanks to the sacrifices of the army. It described the information being reported as “extremist propaganda and hate speech which serves to sow seeds of discord among the Libyan people.”
It expressed its full readiness to receive high-level government delegations, and ensure their security and safety.