Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh affirmed on Thursday that his government will “continue to operate normally, with international recognition, until elections are held,” amid growing tensions between him and his parliament-appointed rival Fathi Bashagha.
Yesterday, he and Bashagha engaged in tit-for-tat as they released statements addressing each other publicly, with each calling on the other to give up pursuit of power.
The rivalry over Libya’s leadership between the two began Bashagha was selected by the House of Representatives to lead the country as interim premier last February, thus effectively terminating the legislative legitimacy of Dbeibeh’s government. However, the latter refuses to relinquish power and remains recognized as the country’s leader by the international community.
Both Bashagha and Dbeibeh are backed by powerful armed groups in the capital, which have been mobilizing as anticipation of imminent conflict looms.
During a cabinet meeting in Tripoli today, Dbeibeh defiantly affirmed that he will “never allow anyone to tamper with the security of the capital and harm civilians, and we will be on the lookout for them.”
“The Libyans are tired of conflicts and wars,” he said. “They only want elections to get rid of the political classes that dominated Libya ten years ago.”