Libya parliament approves rival cabinet to unity govt

BENGHAZI, Libya: Libya’s eastern-based parliament on Tuesday approved a new cabinet, in a challenge to the unity government of Abdulhamid Dbeibah in the capital Tripoli in the west.

The new administration, to be headed by former interior minister Fathi Bashagha, won the confidence of the House of Representatives with a majority of 92 members, speaker Aguila Saleh said.

Bashagha had been tasked in early February with forming a government to replace that of Dbeibah, deemed by the HoR as having outlived its mandate. But Dbeibah, the interim prime minister based in Tripoli, has repeatedly said he will only cede power to an elected government.

The construction tycoon had been appointed a year earlier, as part of United Nations-led efforts to draw a line under a decade of conflict following the 2011 revolt that toppled dictator Moamer Kadhafi.

He was to lead the country to elections in December, but they were indefinitely postponed and Saleh, a rival presidential candidate, argued that his mandate was finished. The House of Representatives, elected in 2014, is based in the eastern city of Tobruk while Dbeibah’s administration is western-based in Tripoli, reflecting the deep and complex divisions that have plagued Libya in recent years.

The rise of Bashagha’s government once again gives the country two prime ministers, and experts have warned it could spark violence. Bashagha has said he will "reach out to everyone".

Whether the political crisis will kindle armed conflict remains unclear, but it leaves Libya without a unified government, with the main political and military forces bitterly divided and with no clear path forward.

Bashagha’s large cabinet with 35 members reflects the extensive negotiations and promises of positions needed to secure support from a majority of members of parliament and the various interests they represent.

A vote had originally been scheduled for Monday, but lawmakers were unable until Tuesday to agree upon Bashagha’s cabinet list. Parliament Speaker Aguila Saleh said the new government was approved by 92 of the 101 members present in the chamber on Tuesday.

That compares to the 132 members that backed Dbeibah’s interim unity government in a special session a year ago. Oil-producing Libya has enjoyed little peace or security since the 2011 Nato-backed uprising against Momaer Qadhafi and it was divided after 2014 between warring parallel administrations in the east and west.

The United Nations backed a ceasefire and peace process after an eastern offensive against Tripoli collapsed in 2020, with most sides in Libya publicly supporting Dbeibah’s interim unity government and scheduling elections for December 2021. After the election was cancelled shortly before the vote was due to take place amid disputes over the rules, the parliament moved to seize control of the political process and replace Dbeibah’s government.