TRIPOLI/JERUSALEM :Libya's prime minister sacked Foreign Minister Najla Mangoush on Monday in an effort to contain a growing furore over Mangoush's meeting with her Israeli counterpart last week, which prompted protests overnight in several Libyan cities. Protesters demonstrated in front of Libya's Foreign Ministry late on Sunday, causing some damage outside the building, where a large security presence was visible early on Monday. Mangoush's office tried to quell the anger late on Sunday, saying she had rejected a request for an official meeting with Cohen, but that they had met during an unplanned encounter while she was meeting Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani. The Libya prime minister sees Israel as a possible bridge to the West and the U.S. administration," the official said. Libya's parliament based in the east, which rejects the GNU, said on Sunday it would hold hearings into the meeting with the Israeli minister.

STORY: The meeting prompted protests overnight in several Libyan cities including in front of the Libyan Foreign Ministry. The meeting is contentious because Libya does not formally recognize Israel and there is widespread public support across the Libyan political spectrum for the Palestinian cause of creating an independent state in territory Israel occupies. Libyan citizen Nouri Abdelsalam said any "normalization" of relations was unacceptable to the Libyan people.

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The talks also touched on possible Israeli assistance for humanitarian issues, agriculture and water management, according to Israel's Foreign Ministry.The Libyan foreign ministry, meanwhile, sought to downplay the importance of the meeting as "unprepared and an unofficial meeting during a meeting with Italy's foreign minister." "Dbeibah's decision to suspend Mangoush suggested that he was not aware of the meeting. The prime minister's office arranged the encounter in coordination with Mangoush, he said.The second official said the meeting lasted for about two hours and Mangoush briefed the prime minister directly after her return to Tripoli. It called for an emergency session Monday in the eastern city of Benghazi.In Israel, Yair Lapid, a former foreign minister and prime minister, criticized Cohen for going public with the sensitive meeting. "Countries of the world this morning are looking at the irresponsible leak of the meeting of the Israeli and Libyan foreign minister and asking themselves: is it possible to manage foreign relations with this country?

By Mostafa Salem and Michael Schwartz, CNNAbu Dhabi and Jerusalem (CNN) — Libya’s internationally recognized government dismissed Foreign Minister Najla Mangoush on Sunday after a meeting she held with her Israeli counterpart sparked an uproar in the country. Israel’s foreign ministry announced on Sunday night that the meeting had taken place in Rome last week. Videos circulating on social media over the weekend showed Libyan protesters burning Israeli flags and attempting to enter the gates of a government building in Tripoli. An Israeli source familiar with the situation appeared to dispute the Libyan account on Monday, saying the meeting with Foreign Minister Eli Cohen was planned, and news that it had taken place was supposed to be made public at some point. The parliament backing the eastern-based government denounced Mangoush’s meeting with Cohen and called for a “harsh punishment.”Mangoush was Libya’s first female foreign minister.

TRIPOLI: Libya's prime minister sacked the foreign minister on Monday in an effort to contain a growing furore over her meeting with her Israeli counterpart last week, which prompted protests overnight in several Libyan cities.Najla Mangoush had said her meeting with Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen in Rome was unplanned and informal, but an Israeli official told Reuters it had lasted two hours and was approved "at the highest levels in Libya".The meeting is contentious because Libya does not formally recognise Israel and there is widespread public support across the Libyan political spectrum for the Palestinian cause. Palestinians seek to establish an independent state in territories Israel captured in the 1967 Middle East war.The dispute over the meeting has fed into Libya's internal political crisis, giving ammunition to Prime Minister Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah 's internal critics at a moment when the future of his interim government was already in question.Protesters demonstrated in front of Libya's Foreign Ministry late on Sunday, causing some damage outside the building, where a large security presence was visible early on Monday. Protests took place in other parts of Tripoli, as well as other cities.Burning tyres blocked some major roads in Tripoli on Monday but there was no sign of violence.Mangoush's office tried to quell the anger late on Sunday, saying she had rejected a request for an official meeting with Cohen, but that they had met during an unplanned encounter while she was meeting Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani.The Israeli official disputed that account. "The meeting was coordinated at the highest levels in Libya and lasted almost two hours. The Libya prime minister sees Israel as a possible bridge to the West and the U.S. administration," the official said.Since 2020 Israel has normalised relations with the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan through the so-called "Abraham Accords" brokered by the United States, which sees further agreements as a key regional goal.Dbeibah's Government of National Unity (GNU), which was installed in early 2021 through a UN-backed process, has pushed for stronger ties with all countries involved in Libya, including the UAE and Israel's main ally the United States.Libya has had little peace or internal unity since a 2011 Nato-backed uprising, and the GNU's legitimacy is contested by major factions outside Tripoli including the eastern-based parliament.The parliament said on Sunday it would hold hearings into the meeting.

Senior Libyan politicians on Sunday called for ousting the government of Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh over the meeting between his Foreign Minister Najla Mangoush and Israeli counterpart Eli Cohen. Former Chair of the High Council of State Khalid Al-Mishri condemned the Libyan and Israeli officials’ meeting. There have also been reports of gunfire in the vicinity of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In other cities, news reports from Libya said that protesters gathered outside government buildings and blocked roads in protest against the meeting in Rome. READ: Israel FM secretly meets with Libya counterpart

Libyan Foreign Affairs Minister Najla Mangoush speaks. Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen and Mangoush met in Rome last week. The Libyan foreign ministry, meanwhile, sought to downplay the importance of the meeting as “unprepared and an unofficial meeting during a meeting with Italy’s foreign minister. However, two senior Libyan government officials told The Associated Press the prime minister did know about the talks between his foreign minister and the Israeli chief diplomat. Harchaoui said the Libyan prime minister’s decision to suspend his foreign minister “undoubtedly” aimed at calming public anger.

The fallout from the meeting between Israel’s Foreign Minister Eli Cohen and Libya's Government of National Unity Foreign Minister Najla Mangoush has been greeted in the Middle East with intense interest and scrutiny. She had met with Turkey’s powerful foreign minister Hakan Fidan in late July. She was actually suspended as foreign minister back in November 2021 by the Presidential Council for her “mismanagement” of the foreign affairs file. In November 2022 she critiqued Greece’s foreign minister for landing in Tripoli but then continuing on to Benghazi without meeting anyone. Its Libya envoy, Abdoulaye Bathily, said on Tuesday that it is imperative stakeholders agree on a unified government that could then lead Libya into elections,” Al-Jazeera said.

By Mostafa Salem and Michael Schwartz, CNNAbu Dhabi and Jerusalem (CNN) — Libya’s internationally recognized government dismissed Foreign Minister Najla Mangoush on Sunday after a meeting she held with her Israeli counterpart sparked an uproar in the country. Israel’s foreign ministry announced on Sunday night that the meeting had taken place in Rome last week. Videos circulating on social media over the weekend showed Libyan protesters burning Israeli flags and attempting to enter the gates of a government building in Tripoli. An Israeli source familiar with the situation appeared to dispute the Libyan account on Monday, saying the meeting with Foreign Minister Eli Cohen was planned, and news that it had taken place was supposed to be made public at some point. The parliament backing the eastern-based government denounced Mangoush’s meeting with Cohen and called for a “harsh punishment.”Mangoush was Libya’s first female foreign minister.

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Libyan foreign minister Najla al-Mangoush has been suspended, following the announcement of a meeting last week with his Israeli counterpart which provoked demonstrations in Tripoli and other Libyan cities. ADVERTISEMENTAn "administrative investigation" by a commission chaired by the Minister of Justice has been launched, according to Libyan Prime Minister Abdelhamid Dbeibah's government. On Sunday, Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen revealed he had held "unprecedented" talks with his Libyan counterpart in Rome last week. "I spoke with the foreign minister about the great potential of relations between the two countries," Cohen was quoted as saying in a statement from his office. The meeting took place under the auspices of Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, according to the Israeli press release.

On Monday Dbeibeh fired Mangoush, Reuters reported, and a Libyan foreign ministry official confirmed Mangoush fled to Turkey out of concern for her safety. However, two senior Libyan government officials told The Associated Press the prime minister knew about the talks between his foreign minister and the Israeli chief diplomat. “The Foreign Minister and Foreign Ministry are committed to expanding Israel’s foreign relations… The leak about the meeting with Libya’s foreign minister did not come from the Foreign Ministry or the Foreign Minister’s office,” said a statement from the ministry. A Foreign Ministry source told Channel 12 that the ministry called Mangoush’s office to tell them about the imminent announcement. “The incident with the Libyan foreign minister was amateurish, irresponsible and a grave failure of judgment,” Lapid added.

Libyan Foreign Minister Najla al-Mangoush, under fire for meeting with her Israeli counterpart, has been dismissed, according to senior sources in the government. Announcement angered IsraelisThe political row broke out Sunday after Israel’s foreign ministry said the two countries’ top diplomats met the previous week in a meeting hosted by Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani. “I spoke with the foreign minister about the great potential for the two countries from their relations,” Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen said in a statement from Israel’s foreign ministry, adding that it was the first such diplomatic initiative between the two countries. Separately, Israel’s former foreign minister and prime minister Yair Lapid criticised Cohen for going public with the sensitive meeting. Overnight protestsDbeibeh had replaced al-Mangoush with Fathallah al-Zani, the current youth minister, as interim foreign minister.

Libyan Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh on Monday sacked Foreign Minister Najla Al-Mangoush, a Foreign Ministry source told Anadolu. The move came one day after Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen said that he had met with Al-Mangoush in Rome, Italy, last week. But the Libyan Foreign Ministry said the meeting was “informal” and “impromptu” and it did not involve any discussion, agreement, or consultation. The first-ever public meeting between the Israeli and Libyan foreign ministers has triggered a storm of anger and protests in Libya. The North African country does not recognise Israel and does not have diplomatic relations with Tel Aviv.