UN Libya Mission condemns attack against Central Bank in Benghazi

The United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) today condemned the reported armed attack against the country’s Central Bank branch in the eastern city of Benghazi.

The Mission also called for the establishment of an independent commission of inquiry to investigate the situation, a UN spokesperson told the press at a Headquarters briefing this afternoon.

“UNSMIL says that the incident and the latest ceasefire breaches stress the importance of moving ahead urgently with the dialogue process, which remains the best solution to Libya’s deteriorating political and security situation,” said Mr. Farhan Haq.

It calls on all parties to do more to make sure that the truce, which the parties unilaterally agreed to last week, is fully respected in order to create a conducive environment for the dialogue.

The ceasefire was announced last week after a first round of intensive talks, hosted by UNSMIL in Geneva, during which participants agreed upon an agenda for discussions going forward, with the aim of reaching a political agreement to form a consensual national unity government, and making security arrangements necessary to end fighting and ensure the withdrawal of armed groups from Libyan cities.

As well as discussing confidence-building measures to safeguard Libya's national unity and to alleviate the population's suffering, participants also agreed to hold another round of talks in Geneva next week and strongly urged all relevant Libyan stakeholders to attend.