The Libyan General Bar Association has welcomed Tripoli Appeal Court ruling that suspended implementation of illegal Turkish-Libyan energy deal, signed by Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh’s government but not approved by the House of Representatives (HoR).
This came in a meeting with HoR Speaker on Firday in al-Qubba, where the Association Council’s Head and members discussed with Aqila Saleh providing the necessary capabilities for lawyers in Libyan courts, similar to bar associations in other countries, according to HoR Media Office.
HoR Speaker affirmed the integrity of the judiciary in Libya, expressing his respect for the judiciary because of its importance in consolidating the rule of justice in the country.
The Court on Monday suspended the energy exploration deal that had angered other Mediterranean powers and inflamed Libya’s own internal crisis.
Libya’s Government of National Unity told Turkey “not to take seriously” a court ruling that suspended an energy exploration deal that the Tripoli government signed with Ankara last year, the Turkish foreign minister said on Thursday.
Speaking in a live TV broadcast, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said that Ankara had been in touch with Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh,, head of the Tripoli-based government.
“This court ruling is not the final verdict. The government still backs the deal and they told us that they are proceeding with the necessary work and we should not take this court ruling seriously,” Cavusoglu said.
Tripoli’s appeals court, which issued Monday’s decision, left room for Dbeibeh’s government to appeal.
“This is a preliminary ruling… The government can take procedures of complaint… on the case. The case is not finalised until a final ruling is issued in the matter,” Mohamed Hamouda, spokesperson for Dbeibeh’s government, told Reuters on Thursday.
The deal had spurred rivalry in the eastern Mediterranean and played into a political standoff in Libya between the government in Tripoli, in western Libya, and an eastern-based parliament which rejects its legitimacy.
Turkey sent military aid in 2019 to help the Tripoli government ward off an assault on the capital by Egypt-backed eastern forces in the civil war.
Later that year, Ankara and Tripoli struck a deal to establish a maritime boundary in eastern Mediterranean waters also disputed by Egypt and Turkey’s historic rival Greece, prompting both those countries to reject the agreement.