The Misrata-Sirte coastal road connecting the east and west of Libya was opened today with a ceremony attended by Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh and Head of the Presidential Council Mohamed al-Menfi.
PM Dbeibeh, who used the words “We will forget the past sufferings of the Libyan people and open a new page” in his statement on his Twitter account, said, “We will meet in Sirte soon”. He also noted that this step was a message to Khalifa Haftar and the Russia-backed Wagner mercenaries, and that they had given some time for their forces to withdraw from the region as soon as possible.
Dbeibeh’s statements were rejected by some officials of Haftar’s forces, while the latest developments were welcomed by most and different parts of the country. Former Minister of Internal Affairs of the Government of National Accord (GNA), Fethi Bashagha, stated that he appreciated the efforts of the Sirte-Jufra Operations Room to implement the ceasefire decisions taken by the 5+5 Joint Military Committee, and that he saw the opening of the coastal road as “a positive step towards reuniting the Libyans and relieving their suffering.”
The Sirte-Misrata coastal road, which had been closed since the Tripoli attack initiated by Haftar forces, the leader of the militia forces in the east, in April 2019, is also a very important trade route.
Clearing the coastal road from mines and mercenaries, which is among the main priorities of the ceasefire agreement agreed by the 5+5 Joint Military Committee in October 2020, is considered as a very significant development for the realization of the national reconciliation and peace process backed by the UN.
