In three days, Libyans will have their chance to vote in the first democratic elections since the uprising that ended the four-decade rule of Muammar Qaddafi.
It has been a long road for Libyans and will be longer yet: the elections are for a national congress that will choose a government, in preparation for real parliamentary elections next year.
The election - despite some doubts - will go ahead this Saturday, but the country remains torn in different directions. There is much political and social housekeeping still to be done.
One of the most high-profile elements has finally been resolved. On Monday, a legal team from the International Criminal Court was finally released after nearly a month in detention in the western town of Zintan, south of the capital Tripoli. Four members of the team had been in custody, accused of spying and attempting to pass on messages to Saif Al Islam, Qaddafi's son who is in a prison in Zintan.
What happens to Saif Al Islam himself is still unclear. Authorities in Zintan are holding him as a bargaining chip, while the government in Tripoli is adamant he must be tried inside the country and not in The Hague under the auspices of the ICC.
Other issues will be even tougher to resolve. The security situation in Libya is still unstable. Clashes in the southern town of Kufra over the past month have led to an influx of government forces. Reports have suggested the clashes may be related to inter-ethnic violence, or competition over lucrative smuggling routes. Local leaders have threatened to boycott the elections.
Elsewhere, there has also been violence, with protesters in Libya's second city, Benghazi, the heart of the uprising against Qaddafi, this week storming the headquarters of the election commission to demand more representation in the new parliament. The national government, long too strong and too centralised under Qaddafi, is now clearly too weak.
Yet its attempt to reassert its authority may be undermining the rule of law. Reports have emerged that the caretaker government may be using Qaddafi-era surveillance equipment against political opponents. Fears of a resurgence of armed Qaddafi-loyalists still drives security policy.
The election takes Libya in a hopeful direction, continuing its path to democracy. There is still a great deal of negotiating to be done to keep Libya whole and make it secure. These elections are, as best, just a beginning to include all Libyans in this new country.
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Favourite Emirati dish: Fish machboos
Favourite spice: Cumin
Family: mother, three sisters, three brothers and a two-year-old daughter
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Paatal Lok season two
Directors: Avinash Arun, Prosit Roy
Stars: Jaideep Ahlawat, Ishwak Singh, Lc Sekhose, Merenla Imsong
Rating: 4.5/5
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
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If you go
- The nearest international airport to the start of the Chuysky Trakt is in Novosibirsk. Emirates (www.emirates.com) offer codeshare flights with S7 Airlines (www.s7.ru) via Moscow for US$5,300 (Dh19,467) return including taxes. Cheaper flights are available on Flydubai and Air Astana or Aeroflot combination, flying via Astana in Kazakhstan or Moscow. Economy class tickets are available for US$650 (Dh2,400).
- The Double Tree by Hilton in Novosibirsk ( 7 383 2230100,) has double rooms from US$60 (Dh220). You can rent cabins at camp grounds or rooms in guesthouses in the towns for around US$25 (Dh90).
- The transport Minibuses run along the Chuysky Trakt but if you want to stop for sightseeing, hire a taxi from Gorno-Altaisk for about US$100 (Dh360) a day. Take a Russian phrasebook or download a translation app. Tour companies such as Altair-Tour ( 7 383 2125115 ) offer hiking and adventure packages.
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