UN indefinitely postpones Libyan dialogue

TRIPOLI - The UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) on Sunday indefinitely postponed the conference of the Libyan dialogue among the country's political parties, which was set to be held on Jan 5, according to a Libyan parliament member.

"A number of parliament members have contacted officials of the UNSMIL to inquire about final arrangements of the dialogue session set to be held on Monday. The mission said it postponed the session indefinitely," the parliament member told Xinhua on the condition of anonymity.

"No reason was given about the change of the date of the dialogue session," the parliament member added.

Omar Hemeidan, spokesperson of the outgoing General National Congress, confirmed the postponement. He pointed out that the UN mission informed the Congress that no date was set for the session,

as most of the mission's staff are on new year holiday abroad.

"The mission informed us it did not set Jan 5 as the date of the session. However, it confirmed intention to organize it in early January, with no specific date set," Hemeidan told Xinhua.

After meeting with UN Security Council on Dec 23, head of the UN Mission, Bernardo Leon, confirmed that the Jan. 5 will be the date of the session of the Libyan dialogue after an initial agreement of all the dialogue's parties, according to a Libya diplomat.

This is the third time the UN-sponsored session is postponed. The session was postponed to Dec 9, and then postponed again to Dec 16 to give more time for consultations between Leon and the parties of the dialogue, according to the Mission.

Libya suffers a political division with two rival parliaments and governments.

The internationally recognized House of Representatives remains in exile in the far eastern city of Tobruk after militias of Libya Dawn took over the capital Tripoli.

The militias revived the expired General National Congress, which appointed a government of its own.