Abul Gheit probes with Algerian FM Libyan developments

CAIRO - 30 August 2020: Arab League Secretary General Ahmed Abul Gheit has shed light on the role played by Algeria in improving the conditions in Libya, saying he looks forward to meeting Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune.

The Arab League chief's statements came during a meeting Monday with Algerian Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra at the start of his visit to Algiers to take part in the ministerial conference of Libya's neighbors being held in the Algerian capital Monday and Tuesday.

A source at the Arab League said the meeting took up the latest developments in Libya as well as the elections due to be held in the north African country late this year.

They discussed a number of Arab and African issues of mutual concern.

Libya's Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Government of National Unity has called on Algeria and Morocco to exercise restraint, avoid further escalation, and to adhere to the common principles and goals for which the Arab Maghreb Union (AMU) was established.

This came in a statement issued by the Libyan Foreign Ministry, in which it expressed its deep regret over the situation between the two countries.

Libya, the chair of the AMU, calls on the Foreign Ministers of the member states to hold a meeting on the sidelines of the Arab League Council meeting that will be held in Cairo from  September 7 to 9, the statement reads.

Algeria’s Foreign Minister, Ramtane Lamamra announced in a press conference that his country decided to cut diplomatic ties with Morocco starting Tuesday, due to what he called "hostile actions", following months of resurgent tensions between the two countries. He also accused it of supporting two organizations he described as "terrorist" and involved in the recent fires that broke out in Algeria.