UN approves one more year extension of Arms Embargo in Libya

The UN Security Council decided to renew measures designed to implement the arms embargo against Libya for another year as the current conflict continues.

The draft resolution, co-penned by Malta and France, and put to a vote in the 15-member Council, received 9 votes in favour, none against, and 6 abstentions.

Speaking prior to the vote, Malta’s Permanent Representative at the UN, Vanessa Frazier, conveyed strong commitment to “the protection of the Libyan people who are the primary victims of conflict and to advancing peace and stability in Libya, the Mediterranean and beyond.”

She hailed European Union’s (EU) Operation IRINI, saying that “Operation IRINI is proof of the EU’s commitment to contribute to the return to peace and stability in Libya.”

The escalation follows months of relative peace after nearly a decade of civil war in Libya, where two rival sets of authorities are locked in a political stalemate.

Long-standing divisions have sparked several incidents of violence in Tripoli in recent years, although most have been over in a matter of hours.

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