ADDIS ABABA (Sputnik) - The African Union (AU) has requested the AU Commission to make effort to organize presidential and parliamentary elections in Libya in October, the AU said in a communique, released on Tuesday, following the two-day 32nd AU Summit, which was held in the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa. Libya has been gripped by conflict since 2011 when the country’s longtime leader Muammar Gaddafi was overthrown and killed. The eastern part of the country is governed by the parliament, backed by the Libyan National Army and located in Tobruk. The United Nations tried to organize the first nation-wide presidential and parliamentary elections last December, however, UN Envoy to Libya Ghassan Salame warned the UN Security Council in early November that the deadline could not be met and suggested postponing the elections until next spring. READ MORE: Tens of Thousands of Refugees Across Libya Facing 'Horrific' Abuses — UN ReportThe African Union is actively involved in seeking a lasting peace in Libya, including through the AU High-Level Committee on Libya, comprised of the organization's member states representing the five African sub-regions and Libya's neighboring countries.

Source: Ethiopian News February 12, 2019 02:26 UTC