Libya's New Unity Government is Anything But

Oded Berkowitz

Politics, Africa

Chaos continues, in Tripoli and beyond.

On March 30 the Presidential Council, the executive body of the UN-backed Government of National Accord (GNA), Libya’s presumptive unity government, landed in Tripoli by sea, following several months of being forced to convene in Tunis since its formation as part of the Libyan Political Agreement (LPA) in January. Since that time, the council has worked to gain political power in the divided country, including by appropriating government facilities in Tripoli, such as the Central Bank and the National Oil Corporation, as well as freezing the assets of political opposition members. While the international community hailed the Presidential Council’s arrival as the coming of Libyan unity, events on the ground suggest this is far from reality.

The mere arrival of the Presidential Council sparked fierce fighting between various militia groups that support it, and those that support the Tripoli-based General National Congress (GNC), which still intermittently occur. On April 5, dissident members of the GNC unilaterally announced the body’s dissolution and reformation as the State Council, its designated role under the LPA. However, on April 6, the GNC announced that these members do not represent the GNC, which is still functioning and opposes the GNA. So while the GNA’s political power and support have undoubtedly grown in recent weeks, it is still a far cry from having substantial control over anything. It is still politically challenged in its own intended capital city by a rival government that is at least partially active, and which enjoys the armed support of some of the militias in and around Tripoli.