Libya PM says key coastal road reopened ahead of peace talks

Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh declares the east-west highway open, but eastern forces say the road remains closed on their side.

The head of Libya’s unity government said he has reopened the main coastal road across the frozen front line, a gesture of progress in the fragile peace process, but eastern forces said the road remained closed. Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh’s move on Sunday to reopen the road is in line with a ceasefire deal agreed last year as part of efforts to resolve Libya’s decade of chaos and violence. Dbeibeh said on Sunday that reopening the coastal road connecting Misrata in western Libya and the Mediterranean city of Sirte marks a “new step” towards re-establishing stability and unity in the North African country.