The new GNA was presented to the HoR on Saturday but after a heated session, the meeting was suspended until Sunday. Meanwhile, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General (SRSG), Martin Kobler, flew into Tobruk to meet with the president of the HoR and also the prime minister-designate, Faiez Serraj. The meeting of the HoR on Sunday did not take place but was postponed until Monday.
Although the HoR was supposed to meet today, for some reason it did not. It appears the UN and supporters of the GNA in the HoR do not want a meeting because they believe the GNA may not receive a vote of approval. The Libya Herald suggests, however, that each side is buying time to try to gain more adherents to their side.
The Herald reports that opponents are buoyed by a number of recent victories in Benghazi and Ajdabiya, which may help the pro-Haftar supporters who reject the GNA as being too much under the influence of the Muslim Brotherhood. Some supporters of the GNA worry there are not enough to approve the GNA. While Buhashem points out that a simple majority is all that is needed, a constitutional amendment is needed to actually activate or appoint the government and integrate the LPA into the 2011 Constitutional Declaration. That vote will require a two-thirds majority and would require more members to be present. As seems common these days, nothing at all is said about the role of Haftar after the GNA is approved. Section 8 of the LPA gives the job of commander in chief of the LNA to the Presidential Council immediately the GNA is given a vote of approval. In an earlier vote the HoR demanded that Section 8 be deleted. It cannot be. Somehow, the issue is ignored not just by the UN and the GNA which is not surprising but by the press as well.
Martin Kobler is obviously trying to rally enough members to vote approval of the GNA but that is not at all certain. This would explain why there is continual suspension of meetings to avoid a vote. Even Buhashem agreed that there were very wide differences of opinion in the HoR over the GNA. He said another new list might be required.
The Herald says if and when HoR members vote, it will be on each one of the cabinet members separately. If this happens some members are likely to be rejected. If the group as a whole are voted on it is feared that the GNA will be rejected. The opposition is also now demanding a reduction of the Presidency Council from nine to three. We should know soon what is to happen but it looks as if the GNA is not likely to be up and running anytime soon, frustrating those foreign countries waiting for the GNA to ask them to intervene military against the Islamic State.
In breaking news, it appears that there has been an attempt to assassinate Kalifa Haftar, commander in chief of the the Libyan National Army (LNA). There are contradicting reports about what happened but one cited by the Libya Observer claims a Haftar convoy was returning to his base when it was attacked by a car bomb that injured Haftar and killed three of his closest assistants.
