Turkish FM stresses dialogue to resolve Libya conflict

By Ali Murat Alhas</p> <p>ANKARA (AA) – Turkish foreign minister on Tuesday said the recent escalation in Libya should be tackled through dialogue instead of military aggression.</p> <p>“Unity and solidarity of Libya should be ensured through a conference organized by the UN, not with military intervention,” Mevlut Cavusoglu said at a joint news conference alongwith his Qatari counterpart Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani.</p> <p>Last Thursday, Khalifa Haftar, a military commander based in eastern Libya, launched military operations with an ambitious campaign to capture the capital Tripoli, where the UN-backed Government of National Accord is headquartered. After initial success, however, the campaign on Monday appeared to have lost momentum.</p> <p>Libya has remained beset by turmoil since 2011, when a bloody, NATO-backed uprising led to the ouster and death of strongman Muammar Gaddafi after four decades in power.</p> <p>Since then, the country’s stark political divisions have yielded two rival seats of power: one in the eastern city of Benghazi, with which Haftar is associated, and another in Tripoli, which has UN support.