TRIPOLI: Rocket fire on the Libyan capital Tripoli, which the UN-recognized government blamed on military commander Khalifa Haftar, killed six people ahead of a Security Council meeting on Wednesday over a cease-fire.
Diplomats have long complained that Libyan peace efforts have been stymied by major powers backing the rival sides, with Haftar ally Russia quibbling over the proposed wording of the cease-fire demand even as the bombardment of Tripoli intensifies.
Three of the six killed in the rocket fire on the south Tripoli neighborhoods of Abu Salim and Al-Antisar late on Tuesday were women, said the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, or OCHA.
Abu Salim Mayor Abdelrahman Al-Hamdi confirmed the death toll and said 35 other people were wounded.
AFP journalists heard seven loud explosions as rockets also hit the city center, the first since Haftar’s Libyan National Army (LNA) militia launched an offensive on April 4 to capture the capital from the government and its militia allies.
The LNA blamed the rocket fire on the “terrorist militias” whose grip on the capital it says it is fighting to end.
The bombardment came as diplomats at the UN Security Council began negotiations on a British-drafted resolution that would demand an immediate cease-fire in Libya.
The proposed text seen by AFP warns that the offensive by LNA “threatens the stability of Libya and prospects for a United Nations-facilitated political dialogue and a comprehensive political solution to the crisis.”
After Britain circulated the text late Monday, a first round of negotiations was held during which Russia raised objections to references criticizing Haftar, diplomats said.
“They were very clear. No reference anywhere,” a council diplomat said. During a tour of the Tripoli neighborhoods worst hit by the rocket fire on Tuesday night, unity government head Fayez Al-Serraj said the Security Council must hold Haftar to account.
At least 189 people have been killed, 816 wounded and more than 18,000 displaced since Haftar ordered his forces to march on Tripoli, according to the World Health Organization.
Britain was hoping to bring the cease-fire resolution to a vote at the Security Council before Friday, but diplomats pointed to Russia’s objections as a hurdle.
The proposed measure echoed a call by UN chief Antonio Guterres, who was in Libya to advance prospects for a political solution.
The draft resolution calls on all sides in Libya “immediately to recommit” to UN peace efforts and urges all member states “to use their influence over the parties” to see that the resolution is respected.
Diplomats have long complained that foreign powers backing rival sides in Libya threatened to turn the conflict into a proxy war.
Resolutions adopted by the council are legally binding.
Russia and France, two veto-wielding permanent members of the Security Council, have praised Haftar’s battlefield successes in defeating Libyan militias aligned with the Daesh group in the south of the country.
Haftar’s offensive on the capital forced the United Nations to postpone a national conference that was to draw up a roadmap to elections, meant to turn the page on years of chaos since the 2011 ouster of Muammar Qaddafi.
Guterres has said serious negotiations on Libya’s future cannot resume without a cease-fire.
