Libya welcomes proposals conducive to solving its crisis

Sunday, May 8, 2011

Proposals, no matter from whom, are welcome as long as they are conducive to solving the crisis of the war-torn country, especially those raised by countries friendly to Libya, he told a press conference on Saturday.

He also expressed the country's demand for full implementation of UN resolutions on the issue of Libya, saying activities in violation of these resolutions should be investigated and reviewed.

The prime minister said Libya shall firmly implement UN Security Council Resolutions 1970 and 1973 as well as other international proposals which call for a truce, especially the cease fire plan put forward by the African Union.

He criticised the Rome meeting on Libya held recently, saying the meeting "violated UN resolutions as no one has authorised the meeting's participants to speak for the Libyan people."

The prime minister also warned some international financial institutions against embezzlement of the frozen assets of Libya.

He said the Libyan government will bring them to court if the financial institutions appropriate the country's assets through "unlawful" means.

In a bid to end the country's bloody conflict and safeguard national unity and independence, Libya's tribal leaders have recently organized a gathering in Tripoli.

More than 2,000 representatives from the country's 850 tribes attended the two-day meeting which concluded late Friday.

During the meeting, the tribal chiefs voiced their support for Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi and agreed to make joint efforts to maintain their country's independence and reject outside intervention.

Some 18 agreements have been reached during the National Conference for Libyan Tribes.
The agreements stressed Libya is an independent country which would not allow any foreign intervention in its internal affairs.

It is the people of Libya who should determine their own political, economic and social systems, said the agreements, adding that those who colluded with the foreign forces shall be ostracized by the tribes.

The representatives also called for an early resumption of social stability in Libya as well as for accepting regional or international agreements which aim to offer a reasonable solution for the country's conflict.

The tribal leaders also pledged joint efforts to protect national assets, including airports, sea ports, factories and large enterprises.

On Saturday Libya's rebels said that the government forces had launched a large number of rockets into the city of Misrata, destroying several fuel storage tanks. Misrata is the last city in western Libya under rebel control and has been under siege for more than two months.

Meanwhile, fierce fighting between Libyan government troops and rebels over control of the Wazen border post, a few kilometers away from the Tunisian border, is causing panic among local population.
The Libyan border post which is considered strategic by both factions has been the object of renewed fighting since Friday.

Mortar shell splinters fell on some quarters of Dhehiba on Saturday afternoon without causing any casualties.

Meanwhile, thousands of Libyan families continued to seek shelter in southern Tunisia, fleeing the violence in their war-torn homeland.

Since the outbreak of the conflict in western Libya, more than 1,600 Libyans enter Tunisia each day. It is estimated that more than 40,000 Libyans, mostly women and children, have found refuge in southern Tunisia.