The United States gave its backing yesterday to UN efforts to resolve differences between Libya’s rival administrations over the management of the central bank without cutting off vital oil income. 

The US embassy said the move by the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) “offers a path forward to resolve the crisis” sparked by the eastern administration’s announcement on Monday that it was suspending operations at all oil fields and export terminals under its control.

 In a statement late Monday, UNSMIL said it was “convening an emergency meeting for all parties involved” in the crisis.

 It also called for “immediately lifting force majeure on oil fields and refraining from using the country’s primary revenue source for political ends”. 

Libya is struggling to recover from years of conflict after the 2011 NATO-backed uprising that overthrew long-time dictator Moamer Kadhaf. 

It remains divided between the UN-recognised government in Tripoli, led by prime minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah as well as the rival administration in the east, backed by military strongman Khalifa Haftar. 

Most of its oil fields are located in regions controlled by Haftar, but oil revenues and the state budget are managed by the Central Bank based in Tripoli. 

On Monday, Libya’s eastern-based administration said it was shutting down oil fields and terminals it controls in response to what it said were attempts by the western- based government to seize control of the Central Bank.

 UNSMIL said “resolving this emerging crisis is an urgent necessity”, and called for measures to protect the Central Bank’s employees from “threats and arbitrary arrests”. 

On 18 August, the bank’s head of information technology was kidnapped, and the bank said it was suspending its operations until his release later the same day. 

A week earlier, Libyan media reported that armed men had besieged the bank in a bid to force the resignation of its governor, Seddik al-Kabir, who has faced mounting criticism from people close to Dbeibah over its management of oil resources and the state budget. On Monday morning, the eastern-based administration said an “outlaw group” close to the Tripoli authorities had forcibly taken over the bank. 

Reports later said that the presidential council, which is close to Dbeibah, had established a commission tasked with leading a “transition of powers”, which had installed a new bank board. 

– Nampa/AFP