Libyan army accepts UN-proposed truce

Spokesman of Libya's east-based army Ahmad al-Mismari on Saturday announced that the army had accepted a UN-proposed humanitarian truce in the capital Tripoli, against the UN-backed government.

A fighter of Libya's UN-backed Government of National Accord in Tripoli, Libya, July 29, 2019. [File Photo: IC]

"The Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces announces a halt to all military operations carried out by the National Army in the suburbs of Tripoli, starting from Saturday until Monday," the spokesman told a press conference.

"The Commander-in-Chief warns that the response of the armed forces will be immediate and harsh on all fronts against any operations or movements from any party of any kind, that is a violation of this truce," al-Mismari said.

On Thursday, the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) called on the Libyan parties to accept a humanitarian truce on the occasion of Eid al-Adha, which takes place on Sunday, as the armed conflict continues between the government and the army.

The government announced accepting the truce, provided that the truce would include all the conflict areas, banning reconnaissance flight, and for the mission to guarantee that the truce wouldn't be violated.

Since early April, the government has been engaged in a deadly armed conflict against the army, which is trying to take over the capital Tripoli and overthrow the government.

The fighting so far has killed more than a thousand people, injured more than 5,700 others, and forced more than 120,000 people to flee their homes, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

The army is allied with the eastern-based government, as the north African nation is politically divided between eastern and western governments.

Libya has been mired in conflicts and chaos ever since the fall of former leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.