The Libyan parliamentary committee said on Wednesday that the upcoming presidential election, which is seen as critical to restoring stability to the conflict-torn country, will be “impossible” to hold as planned.
According to Libyan media, the election, which is scheduled for Friday, is part of a United Nations-backed plan to end a decade of chaos in Libya.
However, due to disagreements over election laws, an independent commission in charge of the electoral process has yet to release a final list of candidates.
After reviewing related technical, security, and judicial reports, Al Hadi al-Sagheer, the head of a parliamentary committee formed to monitor the long-awaited vote, said it is “impossible” for the election to take place on Friday.
The clearest fate of the vote, according to Libyan media, was made in a letter sent by al-Sagheer to Libyan Parliament Speaker Aguila Saleh; the letter did not suggest a new date for the election.
Al-Sagheer asked Saleh to return to the helm of parliament after he temporarily resigned to run for president.
Saif al-Islam, the son of late Libyan dictator Moammar Gaddafi, has applied to run for president. He is wanted by the International Criminal Court on charges of crimes against humanity committed during his father’s 2011 uprising.
General Khalifa Haftar, who leads the self-styled Libyan National Army, is another candidate. He is based in the oil-rich country’s east.
Libya has been in turmoil since Gaddafi’s overthrow in 2011, and it has become a battleground for rival proxy forces, attracting foreign powers.
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