2023-08-31 22:09:37
Libyan Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbaiba has sharply criticized a politically sensitive meeting between his foreign minister and her Israeli counterpart. There will be a “hard reaction” to it, and he rejects any form of normalization of relations with Israel, Dbaiba said Thursday evening at a cabinet meeting in the capital Tripoli. The two countries have no official diplomatic relations, and Libya does not recognize Israel as a state.
Last week, Libyan Foreign Minister Najla Mangush and her Israeli counterpart Eli Cohen met unexpectedly in Italy. According to Israeli information, it was, among other things, a possible cooperation. However, the Libyan government later announced that it was only an “informal” and “unprepared” meeting. The meeting triggered violent protests in the Islamic civil war country Libya. Dbaiba reportedly had the foreign minister suspended to investigate the case.
On Thursday evening, the Libyan head of government made public statements regarding the explosive meeting for the first time. It was “an important matter,” even if “it just happened on the side,” he said. “Regardless of the circumstances, reasons and methods, and regardless of good or bad intentions, we will all learn the details of what happened in Rome through the ongoing investigation.”
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