UN Urges Libya to Hold Elections on Time

The U.N. Security Council urged the Libyan transitional government on Thursday to complete the necessary groundwork to hold national elections on time in December, as concerns grow that they could be postponed.  

"The Security Council stresses the importance of free and fair presidential and parliamentary elections that are inclusive and credible and underlines the importance of arrangements to ensure the full, equal and meaningful participation of women and the inclusion of youth," the 15-nation council said in statement.   Elections are scheduled for December 24 — 70 years to the day since Libya declared independence in 1951. But critical work remains to be done, with less than six months to go, including preparing legal and constitutional frameworks for the vote.   At a conference in Tunis in November 2020, 75 men and women came together as the Libyan Political Dialogue Forum (LPDF) and chose the date and agreed to a road map to get the war-battered country to elections intended to be inclusive, credible and democratic.