France is seeking to resume its mediation to resolve the Libyan crisis, by inviting the main parties to a meeting under the auspices of French President Emmanuel Macron.
In parallel, the head of the National Accord Government, Fayez al-Sarraj is looking to forge a secret deal with Aguila Saleh, the president of the House of Representatives, taking advantage of the lukewarm relations between the latter and Marshal Khalifa Haftar, commander-in-chief of the Libyan National Army (LNA).
Sarraj arrived in Cairo on Sunday on an unannounced visit, which was seen as another step within the French and Egyptian efforts to arrange an encounter between him and Haftar that would pave the way for a broader meeting in the presence of the heads of Parliament and the State Council.
Well-informed sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that Sarraj arrived in Cairo, accompanied only by the director of his office, awaiting a meeting with Haftar in his place of residence at the outskirts of Benghazi.
The sources, who asked not to be identified, said that Sarraj believed that taking this step would be sufficient for the recognition of his government, and for granting it parliamentary legitimacy. It would also help the Parliament to amend the constitutional declaration, allowing the holding of presidential and parliamentary elections before the end of this year.
Members of the Libyan Parliament told Asharq Al-Awsat that Sarraj has promised to offer political and financial bribes, in case they agree on transferring the parliament to Benghazi, while other observers believe that he was seeking to take advantage of the concealed dispute between Saleh and Haftar.
Meanwhile, Sarraj said that Macron called him on Sunday to discuss latest political developments in Libya and means to overcome the current deadlock.
According to a statement by the Libyan official’s office, the two sides underlined the utmost importance of the success of the democratic process and the need to reach practical solutions to hold the elections.
France has once again entered in the mediation of the Libyan crisis, despite the US embassy’s envoy to Libya hinting that the administration of President Donald Trump was not enthusiastic about the French initiative, as a high-ranking Libyan official said, expressing US discontent with the French role.
The French position came after Ghassan Salame, the head of the United Nations Mission in Libya, announced a sudden change in his plan of action to resolve the crisis, after he abandoned his efforts to amend the controversial peace agreement, sponsored by the UN in the resort of Skhirat in Morocco at the end of 2015, calling for holding the elections “as soon as possible”, but without giving any indication of a specific timetable.
