The situation in Libya has deteriorated in recent months, with Libyans fleeing the capital as street-to-street fighting rages between militias. In Benghazi, fighting and clashes continue, even though pro-government forces have recaptured parts of the city from Islamist militiamen.
“The civil war raging in Libya has become a threat to all neighbouring countries, particularly Egypt, which has entered into a ferocious war against the Muslim Brotherhood, as their ‘brothers’ in Libya push towards a full or partial takeover, with open support from Qatar,” wrote Talal Salman in the Beirut-based daily Assafir.
“This represents a direct danger for Egypt and an indirect one for Algeria, through Tunisia, with the possibility that the flames may reach some African countries such as Nigeria, where Islamist organisations are already quite active.”
The editorial of the Dubai-based daily Al Bayan said that “current events in Libya are sparks marking the beginning of a great fire that will burn everything down and turn the entire country into rubble unless some sort of political consensus is achieved to put an end to chaos.
“It would be difficult, if not impossible, to restore stability in Libya and build a unified security structure without a comprehensive political reconciliation, and the only solution to the ongoing strife is to develop a national consensus and establish a common military force that would disarm and impose security.
“Creating a national consensus will not be an easy task. It is no easy path as it requires sufficient compromise from those involved, so as to establish a propitious climate that would lead to agreements and their execution.
“If there is a real intention to build a strong state, then it must be based on the moral values of the people and their unity, to instil tolerance among all social categories and strengthen all aspects of the state devoted through the rule of law in all spheres of life, so as to build a new Libya, under the banner of justice above all,” it concluded.
In the pan-Arab daily Al Hayat, Samir Al Saadawi remarked that “the more the Libyans take an impartial look at the tragic situation they are in, the greater their preoccupations with raging conflicts.
“Billions of dollars that had been stashed by Muammar Qaddafi has been squandered by those who took the reins of power after he was ousted. This money could have been invested in vital sectors such as health, education and housing,” he wrote.
“Ethnic cleansing and beheadings are but the natural product of repression exercised in view of seizing power ... and the remnants of Al Jama’a Al Islamiyyah Al Muqatilah (the Libyan branch of Al Qaeda) have taken over government institutions due to a collective failure to reduce foreign intervention and the lack of modesty that would enable a national consensus similar to that achieved by the Tunisians.
“Let us not forget that the Muslim Brotherhood in Libya are not similar to their ‘brothers’ in Tunisia who are evolving in an environment that forced them into openness and participation.
“Islamists in Libya were part of a ‘reconciliation’ under Qaddafi, who was planning for his son to inherit ... until it all collapsed and the country fell apart,” he concluded.
Translated by Carla Mirza
cmirza@thenational.ae