UNSC extends sanctions against parties threatening Libya’s stability

The U.N. Security Council on Wednesday approved a resolution calling for immediate cease-fire in Libya and extending sanctions against parties threatening Libya’s stability.

The 15-nation council met to discuss Libya days after its parliament, which was replaced in an election in June, reconvened and chose an Islamist-backed deputy as the new prime minister. That left the country with two rival leaders and assemblies, each backed by armed factions.

“The situation in Libya is complicated,” Libya's United Nations Ambassador Ibrahim Dabbashi told the council.

“Yet the situation since the 13th of July has become even more complicated and the situation might unravel into a full-blown civil war if we're not very careful and wise in our actions.”

British Ambassador Mark Lyall Grant, the current council president, says the council’s Libya sanctions committee will meet early next week to decide which individuals will be sanctioned, the Associated Press reported.

The U.N. special envoy to Libya, Tarek Mitri, told the council that the battles in Libya are “unprecedented in their gravity and very alarming.”

Mitri said the number of people displaced is estimated to be over 100,000, with at least another 150,000 seeking refuge abroad.

“There is a general deterioration of living conditions [in Libya]. Food, fuel, water and electricity are in short supply. The departure of foreign medical staff and shortages in medical supplies has rendered the plight of civilians more critical,” said Mr. Mitri.

Libya's government has called for a peacekeeping force to be deployed to help disarm militant groups and restore stability. But council diplomats say the situation is too volatile.