Tarek Mitri: Political Crisis Not Over in Libya

The head of the U.N. mission in Libya welcomed Monday's court ruling outlawing prime minister Ahmed Miitig's election but warned that the country's deeper political crisis was not over.

Tarek Mitri said at United Nations headquarters in New York that security, particularly in the east, had deteriorated, describing as "huge" the number of arms and ammunition across Libya.

The supreme court had earlier ruled Miitig's election as unconstitutional, ending a month-long standoff in the interim parliament that saw two rival cabinets jostle for power.

Mitri welcomed the ruling as "important" and the fact that it had been accepted as "a sign of hope."

"This would not solve the political crisis but at least it would open the way forward towards the resumption of a normal political process," he told reporters.

Asked how security in Libya compared to six months or a year ago, he said: "The situation has deteriorated, especially in the east. There is no doubt about that."

Near daily attacks in the eastern city of Benghazi, cradle of the 2011 revolt against dictator Moammar Gadhafi, have killed dozens of members of the security forces.

"One thing we can all see is that there are arms and ammunitions in huge quantities all over Libya. And not just arms in the hands of the army and police but in the hands of everybody including criminals," said Mitri.

Successive governments in Tripoli have failed to stamp their authority on militias that fought Gadhafi and have refused to surrender their arms or join the regular army.

Mitri told the U.N. Security Council that there had been no sustainable progress on disarmament and reintegration of armed groups, and that insecurity impeded the proper functioning of the justice system.

Courts in the cities of Derna, Benghazi and Sirte had stopped working for prolonged periods to protest attacks against prosecutors, judges and other state officials, he said.

Mitri said U.N.-facilitated dialogue was "more crucial than ever" ahead of a June 25 election to elect a 200-member council to replace the interim parliament, or General National Congress.

"The stakes are high and we will spare no efforts in helping prevent Libya's descent into greater instability and violence," the special representative told the Security Council.

He said any "resort to the use of force will have disastrous consequences for the country."

Mitri said he would convene talks June 18-19 between 50 representatives of political leaders, revolutionaries, tribal figures, civil society and women to address security and other divisive issues.

For the June 25 election, there are 1.5 million registered voters and 1,714 registered candidates, including 152 women contesting 32 reserved seats, according to Mitri.

"We have called on all parties to ensure that elections are held in a peaceful atmosphere and not delayed," he said.

He later told reporters that he hoped the elections would allow the political crisis to get back on track.

"It is essential that we do our best to change the dynamics in Libya... We want to create all the conditions for the success of these elections," he said.