Guterres, EU call for restraint in Libya

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Thursday called for calm and restraint in Libya, as the eastern Libyan army prepares to take over the capital Tripoli where the UN-backed government is based.

"Antonio Guterres stressed that a situation of calm and restraint would be a very important element for the national conference to be successful," the UN Support Mission in Libya tweeted.

Meanwhile, the European Union (EU) delegation to Libya said there is no military solution to the Libyan crisis, Xinhua news agency reported.

"We are deeply concerned by the military buildup underway in Libya and the escalatory rhetoric which seriously risks leading to an uncontrollable confrontation," the EU said in a statement approved by the EU Heads of Mission to Libya.

"We urge all parties to immediately de-escalate tensions and cease all acts of provocation," it added.

The military escalation comes as the country prepares to hold a UN-sponsored national conference that is expected to bring together many Libyan parties with a view to end the political crisis in the war-shattered oil-rich country.

Libya has been struggling to make a democratic transition amid insecurity and chaos ever since the fall of former leader Muammar Gaddafi's regime in 2011.

--IANS

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