Libya ready for polls despite wrangling: elections chief - France 24

Preparations are almost finished for polls in war-torn Libya, the head of the electoral commission says, despite wrangling over voting laws and warnings the outcome could be contested.

"We are 80 or 90 percent ready" for the presidential and parliamentary votes in December and January, Imed al-Sayeh, head of the country's High National Election Commission (HNEC), said in an interview with AFP.

"I think there will be very strong turnout for these elections, especially as there will be direct presidential polls for the first time since Libya's independence" in 1951, he said at his office in Tripoli.

The polls are part of a United Nations-backed peace process that has seen a year of relative peace following a ceasefire between eastern and western camps in the North African country.

But disputes over the legal and constitutional basis of the ballots and who is eligible to stand raised doubts over the process.

Analysts warned of a return to conflict if the outcome is contested.