New UN envoy in Libya’s Misurata for unannounced visit

By Walid Abdullah

TRIPOLI, Libya

UN envoy to Libya Ghassan Salama arrived in Libya’s northwestern city of Misurata on Tuesday on an unannounced visit.

Without giving further details, the UN’s mission in Libya tweeted that Salama had “arrived at Misurata airport to meet with political and community leaders”.

Last week, the UN envoy visited the city of Tobruk, where he met with Aqila Salih, speaker of Libya’s Tobruk-based parliament.

Salama also paid a visit to Libyan capital Tripoli, where he met with Abdul Rahman al-Suwaheli, head of the UN-backed unity government’s presidential council.

Salama is the UN’s sixth special envoy to Libya. He was appointed to the position earlier this month, replacing Martin Kobler, who had filled the post from October 2015 until late July 2017.

Libya has been wracked by turmoil since 2011, when a bloody popular uprising ended with the ouster and death of longtime leader Muammar Gaddafi.

In the aftermath of Gaddafi’s departure, the oil-rich country's long-simmering social and political divisions have yielded three rival seats of government and a host of competing militia groups.