Prince Mohamed al-Senussi Warns Against Lifting Arms Embargo

The Libya Herald reports that Prince Mohamed al-Senussi,  the son of the late Crown Prince Hassan El-Rida, has called on the international community not to lift the arms embargo on Libya or the freeze on Libyan Investment Authority (LIA) assets.

In a statement published this week, Senussi noted that the arms embargo imposed by the UN Security Council in 2011 had had limited impact because Libya was already awash with arms and also because regional states have ignored it by providing weapons and ammunition to their proxy militias in the country. He was believed to be referring to Egypt, the UAE, Turkey and Qatar.As a result of the weapons proliferation, the civil war continues and it has been a “breeding ground” for extremists, he stated. Attacks by militias have also resulted in civilian casualties, he added.Referring to calls by both the internationally-recognised Government of National Accord head by Faiez Serraj and the rival Beida-based interim government of Abdullah Al-Thinni for an end to the embargo in order to fight terrorism, he said that to do so “would be premature and a disaster inside and outside Libya”.

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