Libyan High Council of State calls for postponing elections

The High Council of State in Libya called for postponing the presidential elections until February as disagreements grow over the rules and legal basis for voting.

The High Council of State in Libya called for postponing the December 24 presidential elections until February, amid growing differences over the rules and legal basis for voting aimed at ending the 10-year instability.

The statements of the High Council, an advisory body established under the Libyan political agreement of 2015 and not recognized by all political entities in the country, came less than three weeks before the elections.

Debate rages on the extent of the powers of the High Council of State in the complex Libyan political arena, but the HC's statement raises the doubts surrounding the conduct of the elections.

Haftar back to the race

On December 6, the Tripoli Court of Appeal decided to return presidential candidate Khalifa Haftar to the race scheduled for December 24.

The court rejected the appeal ruling issued against Haftar, because it "lacked spatial jurisdiction to consider the case", according to the Libyan Center Gate.

Earlier on November 30, the Zawiya Court issued a ruling excluding Haftar from the list of candidates for the presidential elections, after it accepted the appeal submitted against him and the High National Elections Commission.

The Sebha Court of Appeals rejected Sunday the appeal submitted by the Electoral Commission against the ruling to return Saif al-Islam Gaddafi to the race.

For his part, the second deputy head of the Supreme Council of State, Omar Bushah, reiterated the council's position on the elections, saying that it "is going through a real crisis that has been proven by observing the conditions that Libya is going through now at this sensitive stage."

He noted that it was founded on incorrect foundations and laws that violated the political agreement and the constitutional declaration.

It is noteworthy that Libyan media previously reported that a military court in Misrata had issued a death sentence in absentia against Khalifa Haftar.