election watch

Libya: Who are the main presidential candidates?

By Jihâd Gillon, Sarah Vernhes

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Posted on December 10, 2021 12:29

Firefox_Screenshot_2021-12-09T17-48-59.895Z The six frontrunners for Libya’s presidential election on 24 December 2021. seif el islam khalifa haftar abdulhamid dabaiba aref ali nayed bechir saleh fathi bachagha © Montage JA
The six frontrunners for Libya’s presidential election on 24 December 2021. seif el islam khalifa haftar abdulhamid dabaiba aref ali nayed bechir saleh fathi bachagha © Montage JA

Libya’s general elections, which have been postponed many times, are supposed to end the interminable transition phase and provide the country with a legitimate and unified government at the end of the year. Here are the leading candidates for the 24 December presidential election… assuming that it goes ahead as planned.

Libya’s presidential election, which was supposed to provide the country with legal and legitimate leadership, was announced many times and then postponed until the end of the year. Whether this electoral event takes place as scheduled or is postponed, it remains crucial for Libya’s future and constitutes a major geopolitical stake in the eyes of international powers.

In 2018, France put all its weight behind holding elections before the end of the year. However, clashes between militias in the capital dashed President Emmanuel Macron’s hopes, while the indefinite postponement of the election served as a pretext for Khalifa Haftar’s offensive on Tripoli in April 2019.

Nearly three years and a new civil war later, it’s the same old story, except that the landscape has changed considerably, as foreign fighters have arrived en-masse, while Turkey and Russia have become increasingly

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