UN welcomes swap of detainees between Libyan factions

United Nations, Jan 7 (IANS) The UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) on Wednesday welcomed the exchange of dozens of detainees between the rival factions of the east-based Libyan National Army (LNA) and the Government of National Accord (GNA)."UNSMIL warmly welcomes the news today about an exchange of 35 detainees facilitated by the (5+5) Joint Military Commission in the city of Shwairif, as part of confidence building measures agreed upon in the ceasefire agreement," Xinhua news agency quoted the mission as saying in a statement on Wednesday."This second official exchange of detainees is the result of the steadfast commitment by the JMC to move forward with the full implementation of the ceasefire agreement. "In this spirit, UNSMIL calls on both parties to swiftly finalize ongoing negotiations to re-open coastal road," the statement added.The LNA and the UN-backed GNA had been engaged in a deadly armed conflict for more than a year in and around the capital Tripoli, which ended in early June 2020 when the latter announced its takeover of all western Libya after the withdrawal of the east-based army.On October 23, 2020, the Libyan delegations to the 5+5 Joint Military Commission talks in Geneva signed a UN-sponsored permanent ceasefire agreement.A month later, the Joint Military Commission agreed on terms for the ceasefire implementation in the country, including the return of forces back to their camps and the withdrawal of foreign forces from conflict lines.The delegations also agreed to exchange all prisoners, remove landmines in cooperation with the UN teams and the General Intelligence Service, and ban hate speech.
--IANS ksk/