"I've chosen Major General Khalifa Belgacem Haftar for the post of commander-in-chief of the army after promoting him to the rank of lieutenant general," Aguila Salah told AFP, adding that Haftar would be sworn in before parliament.
The internationally backed legislature created the post of army chief under a new law passed last week.
A member of parliament said at the time that the law was adopted to "legitimise" Haftar, who calls himself chief of the Libyan National Army.
Last May, Haftar launched an offensive against Islamists in the country's east, prompting the then-government to accuse him of trying to stage a coup.
But after Islamists seized the capital following elections in June and the parliament fled to the country's far east, the internationally recognised authorities have gradually allied themselves with him.
Last month, they formally requested that he and 129 other retired officers return to active service.
Since the 2011 overthrow of dictator Moamer Kadhafi in a NATO-backed uprising, Libya has been awash with weapons and opposing militias are battling for control of its cities and oil wealth.
There are also growing fears about efforts by the Islamic State jihadist group to establish a stronghold in the strife-torn country.
The international community faces a daunting task to find a political solution to the lawless nation's political and military crisis.
Fajr Libya, a coalition of militias that seized Tripoli and which backs a rival government based in the capital, has rejected any political settlement that includes Haftar.
AFP
timesofindia.indiatimes.com
2/3/15
--
-
Related:
-
GR
FR
DE
ES
IT
RU
EU
Libyan forces hit airports in Tripoli, Misrata ...
ReplyDeleteForces from Libya’s internationally recognized government carried out air strikes on Maitiga airport in Tripoli and on an airport in Misrata town on Tuesday to retaliate against rival forces controlling the capital, a security official said.
Saqir El-jaroshi, air force commander for the recognized government, said the strikes were in response to attacks on Zintan airport by forces allied to the Libya Dawn group, which took over Tripoli last year and set up its own government.
A source at Maitiga airport in the Tripoli said the strikes had hit an area near the runway, but did not cause any major damage.
Meanwhile a warplane belonging to the forces controlling the Libyan capital Tripoli bombed the oil ports of Ras Lanuf and Es Sidra on Tuesday, causing only minor damage, according to a security official allied with the internationally recognized government.
Oilfields and ports are increasingly a target in Libya’s conflict, which pits two rival governments and their armed forces against each other, nearly four years after the uprising that ousted Muammar Qaddafi...............http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2015/03/03/Libyan-forces-hit-oil-ports-with-air-strikes-minor-damage-official.html
3/3/15