
The approval of a new government by Libya’s parliament on Tuesday was rejected by the incumbent prime minister.
After a televised vote by 92 of 101 members present in the chamber on Tuesday, the parliament speaker declared Fathi Bashagha as prime minister.
Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah who was installed through a U.N.-backed process in 2021 however vowed not to cede power following the vote, raising the risk of fighting among armed factions or territorial partition between rival administrations.
Bashagha’s arrangements with “security and military authorities” to set up his government in Tripoli were opposed by armed groups there that are backed by eastern commander Khalifa Haftar.
The United Nations and foreign powers have avoided any definitive statement on which administration should now be seen as legitimate, and have instead pushed for quick elections.