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By Sami Zaptia.
London, 16 October 2019:
A statement issued by the spokesperson for the EU yesterday said that there is no military solution to the Libyan crisis, hostilities must end immediately, and it called for a return to UNSMIL-led political dialogue.
The statement came on the back of an airstrike attributed by Tripoli to Khalifa Hafter’s forces that killed three children in the Furnaj residential area of Tripoli. The Hafter forces have denied responsibility for their deaths.
The full statement read as follows:
‘‘Three young girls from the same family were killed in an attack in Tripoli on Monday, adding to an already too high a number of civilian casualties of escalating violence in Libya. We express our deep condolences to the family of the victims and wish a speedy recovery to the family members injured in the attack.
After half a year of renewed fighting, the situation in Libya continues to deteriorate. This and other recent airstrikes carried out in urban areas in and around Tripoli have caused further suffering to the Libyan population. All parties must respect International Humanitarian Law and human rights, and in particular ensure the protection of civilians. Those responsible for war crimes must be held fully accountable.
There is no military solution to the Libyan crisis. Therefore, all parties need to immediately end hostilities and return to political negotiations under the leadership of the United Nations. The European Union firmly supports the work of the UN Special Representative Ghassan Salamé to relaunch the political process.
The international community has the duty to unite and accompany the Libyans to build peace, reconciliation and stability in the country, including through initiatives such as the Berlin one’’.
