Libya vows to take over capital if UN talks fail
Date 2015/5/9 16:58:43 | Topic: Libya
|  Libya's United Nations envoy says his government will take over the country's capital "by force" from rival militants if the UN-led peace talks between the competing governments do not move forward in the coming days.
Ambassador Ibrahim Dabbashi said on Friday that should there be no advance in the negotiations, his government, which is under a UN arms embargo, "has to take necessary steps even to take the capital by force."
"Once the government retakes the capital Tripoli, and controls the whole western area of Libya, I think it would be very easy to stop this flow of illegal immigrants to Europe because we know everyone who is involved in this business," Dabbashi added, noting that the smuggling operations are largely based in western Libya.
Reacting to efforts by several UN Security Council (UNSC) members earlier this year to block his government’s request for a major arms shipment to the country, Dabbashi insisted that the weaponry are needed to battle ISIL militants in the country and that "the first victims" of the Libya arms embargo will be Europe, adding that "the terrorists will infiltrate ... Europe itself."
He further called on European governments to exert pressure on UNSC members to allow the shipment of arms to his government in Libya, specifically blaming two permanent council members, the US and Britain, for the lack of delivery of the weapons.
"Maybe they don't care if the immigration continues or not because they are far away from it," Dabbashi emphasized.
Moreover, the Libyan envoy largely rejected a European Union scheme to counter the worsening migrant crisis that is centered in his war-ravaged country, highlighting the fact that his government has not even been consulted on the issue and further ruling out EU troops on Libyan soil “at this stage.”
Diplomats have been working on a draft UNSC resolution that would be militarily enforceable and authorize an EU operation that would seize suspected migrant smuggling ships on the high seas, in Libya's territorial waters and even on the country's coast.
UNSC diplomats emphasize that Libya’s blessing is required for any EU ground forces in the country. EU's Foreign Policy Chief Federica Mogherini is due to brief the council Monday.
Dabbashi reiterated during the interview that the best way to resolve the issue would be to arm the “legitimate” government.
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