UN: Libya’s Warring Factions Agree to Resume Peace Talks

The United Nations mission in Libya says that insurgents led by Benghazi-based renegade general Khalifa Haftar and the Tripoli-based Government of National Accord (GNA) have agreed to return to the peace table. The mission did not say when the talks would resume but noted that they would take place by way of videoconferencing owing to the coronavirus pandemic. The previous talks, held in Geneva, broke down in late February following alleged truce violations and disagreements over who would be allowed to participate. Haftar’s self-styled Libyan National Army (LNA) launched an offensive in April 2019 that saw its forces sweep out of the east, grabbing key oil fields and some cities while on the way to try to encircle the Tripoli. The LNA became bogged down outside the capital, unleashing sporadic bombardments until retreating about two weeks ago, with Turkish military support for the GNA said to have turned the tide.