United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday confirmed his support for the Libyan National Accord government led by Faiz al-Sarraj.
This came in a statement issued by Stephen Dujarric, the Secretary-General's spokesman, after Guterres had a phone conversation with Al-Sarraj today and discussed the situation in Libya.
For years, Libya has suffered from armed conflict. With the support of Arab and European countries, the forces of retired Major General Khalifa Haftar have contested the legitimacy and authority of the oil-rich country.
"The Prime Minister (Al-Sarraj) indicated, during the telephone conversation, his commitment to dialogue within the framework of the Libyan Joint Military Commission 5 + 5, and expressed his interest in the political solution based on the elections," Dujarric added.
And the United Nations announced in early June the acceptance of the internationally recognized Al-Wefaq government and the forces of retired Major General Khalifa Hifter to resume the ceasefire talks, which had already started on February 23.
Dujarric said that Guterres and Al-Sarraj "also discussed the need to reopen closed oil stations and fields in the country."
Supporters of the port and oilfields are closed, claiming that the Libyan government, which is internationally recognized, is using money to sell oil to pay wages to foreign fighters, which Tripoli strongly denies.
Mass graves
Guterres expressed his "shock" at the recent find of mass graves in Libya, stressing the United Nations' willingness to assist in efforts to ensure accountability.
On Tuesday, the Libyan army announced the recovery of 208 bodies from mass graves south of the capital, Tripoli (west), and in the city of Tarhuna and its environs (90 km southeast of Tripoli), within 23 days. These areas were controlled by Haftar's forces.
On June 22, the United Nations Human Rights Council decided to form an international "fact-finding" committee throughout Libya since the beginning of 2016.
The Al-Wefaq government had previously asked the United Nations for assistance in investigating the mass graves found in Tarhuna after retrieving it from Haftar's forces, and while the European Union called for an urgent investigation, the Libyan authorities began pursuing those suspected of these crimes.
At that time, Farhan Haq, deputy spokesman for the United Nations Secretary-General, confirmed that the Libyan authorities requested the assistance of the UN mission in the country to investigate the mass graves that were discovered in Tarhuna (80 km southeast of Tripoli) after their recovery on the fourth of last month. He also said that the UN mission was in contact with the Libyan authorities to determine the type of assistance it could provide for the investigations.