Libya's eastern gov't approves state budget 

Libya’s parliament today approved a budget for the government it appointed in March despite the incumbent administration refusing to step down, a move that may accelerate a return to parallel rule.

The parliament in the coastal city of Sirte passed the 89.7 billion Libyan dinar ($18.6 billion) budget unanimously, its spokesperson said, to finance the government of Fathi Bashagha, who has been unable to enter Tripoli to take control there.

The dispute over control of government and state revenue, and over a political solution to resolve 11 years of violent chaos, threatens to launch Libya back into administrative division and war.

In Tripoli, Abdulhamid Dbeibah, who was installed last year through a UN-backed process to head an interim unity government, has rejected the parliament’s appointment of Bashagha and says he will step down only after an election.

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