Libya’s House of Representatives reappointed Prime Minister Abdullah al-Thinni yesterday as the government lost control of ministries in the capital where armed groups have taken over and a separate parliament has claimed legitimacy.
The parliament that was elected in June moved to the remote eastern city of Tobruk last month as rival armed groups battled for Tripoli. An alliance led by forces from the western city of Misrata seized control of the capital last week.
The reappointment of Thinni, a former defence minister and career soldier who has been prime minister since March, sets him the challenge of reasserting government control over a country where many fear a descent into full-scale civil war.
Parliamentary spokesman Faraj Hashem said 64 of the 106 representatives present had voted for Thinni and the house had instructed him “to form a crisis government within a period of time not exceeding two weeks.”
US Foreign Minister John Kerry called Thinni before his appointment to give his support, the Libyan government said in a statement. Both stressed the need for national dialogue and reconciliation, it added.
In a stark illustration of the government’s loss of control in Tripoli, a video posted online showed dozens of men, some armed, crowding around a swimming pool at anUS embassy building, with some diving in from a nearby building.
Washington said on Sunday that an armed group had taken over an abandoned annex of the US Embassy but had not broken into the main compound. All embassy staff were evacuated last month.
Late on Sunday, the government released a statement admitting it had lost its grip on many levers of power.
“We announce that most ministries, institutions and state bodies in the capital Tripoli are out of our control,» it said, adding that armed groups had prevented staff from entering some government buildings.
