African leaders seek to clear way for Libyan dialogue

African leaders and a senior UN envoy met on Thursday in the Congo in a bid to secure a truce to war-torn Libya.
UN chief Antonio Guterres has repeatedly warned that Libya’s civil war become a playground for foreign forces in North Africa and threatens to spill over into the Sahel and Lake Chad regions.
Libya peace negotiations, known as the Berlin peace process, were held since September. In January, world leaders agreed to halt foreign interference in Libya and impose an arms embargo.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan have been mediating for a ceasefire between the UN-recognized GNA government and its rival faction, the LNA. The LNA is supported by Russia, Egypt, France and the United Arab Emirates, while Turkey backs the GNA.
The meeting in the Congo is the second since the Berlin summit. Congo President Denis Sassou Nguesso urged an “unequivocal message” to prepare a conference on national reconciliation for Libya.
He was joined by South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa, Chadian leader Idriss Deby Itno, AU commission chief Moussa Faki Mahamat, and Algerian Prime Minister Abdelaziz Djerad.
The African nations action comes after the UN envoy to Libya quit due to stress, following months of unsuccessful work aimed at bringing a ceasefire.