Tunisia, the current president of the UN Security Council, called on Monday for an urgent resolution to send international monitors to support Libya’s brittle ceasefire.
“We hope that it will be adopted as soon as possible” because “there is a momentum, yet it’s a little bit fragile,” said Tarek Ladeb, Tunisia’s ambassador to the UN, referring to the negotiations between Libyan parties and the UN mission there.
At the end of last year, UN chief Antonio Guterres proposed using international monitors in Libya amid hopes that foreign fighters would soon leave and the country could turn the page on a decade of conflict.
The warring sides reached a ceasefire on October 23 in Geneva under which all foreign forces are to leave within three months – that is, by January 23. The international observers would monitor their departure.
Mr Guterres asked for a group that would include civilians and retired soldiers from regional groups such as the African Union, EU and Arab League.
He called in particular for all nations to respect the UN arms embargo on Libya, which has been breached.
Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, the head of the Libyan National Army in the country’s east, reached the truce after fighting with the Tripoli-based Government of National Accord reached stalemate. The Tripoli government had strong support from Turkey.
In early December, UN envoy Stephanie Williams estimated that 20,000 foreign troops and mercenaries remained in the country, calling the situation a “shocking violation of Libyan sovereignty”.
While October’s ceasefire has largely held, Gen Haftar last month vowed to “drive out the occupier by faith, will and weapons,” leading Turkey to warn of retaliation to any attack by the “war criminal”.
Under Mr Guterres’ proposal, monitors would initially operate in a triangular section of Libya around Sirte, the birthplace of former dictator Muammar Qaddafi –, whose removal in 2011 set off a decade of turmoil.
The observers would expand to other parts of the country until they can be replaced by a unified Libyan national force.
Tunisia, a non-permanent member of the Security Council, assumed its rotating presidency in early January. Its work programme does not at this stage include a meeting on Libya until the end of the month.
In numbers
- Number of children under five will fall from 681 million in 2017 to 401m in 2100
- Over-80s will rise from 141m in 2017 to 866m in 2100
- Nigeria will become the world’s second most populous country with 791m by 2100, behind India
- China will fall dramatically from a peak of 2.4 billion in 2024 to 732 million by 2100
- an average of 2.1 children per woman is required to sustain population growth
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MATCH INFO
Chelsea 4 (Mount 18',Werner 44', Hudson-Odoi 49', Havertz 85')
Morecambe 0
MATCH INFO
Uefa Nations League
League A, Group 4
Spain v England, 10.45pm (UAE)
Results
5pm: Wadi Nagab – Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (Turf) 1,200m; Winner: Al Falaq, Antonio Fresu (jockey), Ahmed Al Shemaili (trainer)
5.30pm: Wadi Sidr – Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,200m; Winner: AF Majalis, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel
6pm: Wathba Stallions Cup – Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (T) 2,200m; Winner: AF Fakhama, Fernando Jara, Mohamed Daggash
6.30pm: Wadi Shees – Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 2,200m; Winner: Mutaqadim, Antonio Fresu, Ibrahim Al Hadhrami
7pm: Arabian Triple Crown Round-1 – Listed (PA) Dh230,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Bahar Muscat, Antonio Fresu, Ibrahim Al Hadhrami
7.30pm: Wadi Tayyibah – Maiden (TB) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Poster Paint, Patrick Cosgrave, Bhupat Seemar
THE DETAILS
Director: Milan Jhaveri
Producer: Emmay Entertainment and T-Series
Cast: John Abraham, Manoj Bajpayee
Rating: 2/5
Key findings of Jenkins report
- Founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hassan al Banna, "accepted the political utility of violence"
- Views of key Muslim Brotherhood ideologue, Sayyid Qutb, have “consistently been understood” as permitting “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” and “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
- Muslim Brotherhood at all levels has repeatedly defended Hamas attacks against Israel, including the use of suicide bombers and the killing of civilians.
- Laying out the report in the House of Commons, David Cameron told MPs: "The main findings of the review support the conclusion that membership of, association with, or influence by the Muslim Brotherhood should be considered as a possible indicator of extremism."
Another way to earn air miles
In addition to the Emirates and Etihad programmes, there is the Air Miles Middle East card, which offers members the ability to choose any airline, has no black-out dates and no restrictions on seat availability. Air Miles is linked up to HSBC credit cards and can also be earned through retail partners such as Spinneys, Sharaf DG and The Toy Store.
An Emirates Dubai-London round-trip ticket costs 180,000 miles on the Air Miles website. But customers earn these ‘miles’ at a much faster rate than airline miles. Adidas offers two air miles per Dh1 spent. Air Miles has partnerships with websites as well, so booking.com and agoda.com offer three miles per Dh1 spent.
“If you use your HSBC credit card when shopping at our partners, you are able to earn Air Miles twice which will mean you can get that flight reward faster and for less spend,” says Paul Lacey, the managing director for Europe, Middle East and India for Aimia, which owns and operates Air Miles Middle East.
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
