Libya Parliament push to replace interim PM

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The Libyan parliament published criteria governing candidates for the premiership in a push to replace interim Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah.

The move to oust the premier comes a month after the UN-sponsored presidential elections were delayed.

The presidential elections were meant to help the Arab North African nation past a decade of chaos following the 2011 NATO-backed toppling of President Muammar Al-Gaddafi that threw the nation into a frenzy.

In a session with 120 lawmakers present, the Libyan parliament approved the conditions to be met by candidates to take on the premiership, spokesperson Abdullah Bliheg said.

The assembly published a list of 13 criteria for upcoming candidates, including a commitment not to stand in future elections, having only the Libyan nationality, and receiving the backing of at least 25 MPs.

The December 24 election was postponed following months of wrangling over its legal basis and who could stand.

Those opposed to Dbeibah's premiership said his government's mandate was over. Others argued the administration should stay in place until fresh elections take place.

The United Nations has also called for a new date for the presidential elections instead of replacing the government.

Dbeibah is a Libyan businessman and politician, and he took office in early 2021 as part of a process intended to help bring an end to the complex Libyan conflict brought upon the nation by the West.

Dbeibah asserted that he would only hand in the premiership to an elected government.

Parliament speaker Aguila Saleh last week urged the committee responsible for supervising the elections to decide by the end of this month on a date for the presidential and legislative elections.

A day earlier, he had called for a new interim government, arguing that the current one had outlived its mandate.