The United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) appealed Saturday to all parties to immediately implement the humanitarian truce in Libya and stop all military operations in order to allow Libyan authorities to address the threat of the Coronavirus.
In a statement issued to remark the one-year anniversary of the outbreak of the Tripoli war, the mission said that the Coronavirus represents the greatest imminent threat to the safety of the Libyan people, and that the Libyan parties to the conflict as well as the external parties supporting them should respond to the calls of the United Nations Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, as well as many concerned Libyans, and stop this war immediately.
The mission called on the parties to the conflict, and the external supporters, to accept the proposed ceasefire agreement in Geneva, adopt the outputs of the Berlin conference, implement Security Council Resolution 2510 and engage without delay in the three tracks (military, political and economic).
The mission indicated that the conflict in Tripoli escalated and took the form of a “dangerous proxy war and perhaps an endless war fueled by malicious external forces which led to the expansion of the geographical scope of this war, and civilians are the ones who pay the highest price.”
UNSMIL pointed to the deterioration of the humanitarian situation to levels not seen in Libya before.
“Between April 1, 2019 and March 31, 2020, we documented at least 685 civilian casualties (356 dead and 329 injured), while approximately 149,000 people inside and around Tripoli have had to flee their homes since the beginning of the attack.” It said.
The mission said that the war had damaged homes, hospitals, schools and detention facilities, increased human rights violations and deteriorated conditions of detention, adding last year, there were increasing reports of hundreds of cases of enforced disappearance, arbitrary detention, torture, extrajudicial executions and incitement to violence by armed groups in towns and cities across Libya with impunity.
UNSMIL indicated in its statement that the war inflicted heavy losses on the already-faltering economy, saying Libya became overburdened with debts by more than 100 billion Libyan dinars in locally, an additional billion dollars in the credit limits for the imports of fuel locally, and 169 billion Libyan dinars as contractual obligations.
It noted that the flow of foreign fighters and advanced weapons systems to the country continues unabated, which has led to an escalation of violence as a direct result of their use on the battlefield.
“Despite the commitments undertaken by all the participants in the Berlin Conference, some of these countries have nevertheless continued to supply this or that party in a blatant violation of the UN arms embargo.” UNSMIL indicated.
