Washington, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Jim Risch, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today released the following statement regarding announcement of a temporary truce in Libya. The truce comes after months of clashes between the United Nations-backed backed Government of National Accord (GNA) and its rival, the eastern-based Libyan National Army (LNA). Fighting between the rival forces has resulted in thousands of civilian casualties, forcing more than 100,000 to flee their homes.
“I commend the U.N. for its work to broker a temporary ceasefire in the Libyan capital of Tripoli for the holiday of Eid al-Adha—the Libyan people deserve no less than to celebrate the Eid in peace” said Risch. “All parties should respect the terms of the agreement. My hope is that all sides will use the truce as an opportunity to build a permanent, comprehensive, and inclusive peace settlement in line with the relevant U.N. Security Council Resolutions, as well as the U.N. arms embargo against Libya. Additionally, I strongly condemn the attack on a vehicle transporting U.N. mission staff that resulted in the deaths of three U.N. workers.”
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