By Libya Herald reporters.
Tunis, 22 November2015:
If Libyans do not unite urgently in the face of IS terrorists, they will be “committing . . .[restrict]suicide” French minister of defence, Jean-Yves Le Drian warned today.
IS terrorists would win and take over Libya if a deal on the Government of National Unity is not reached said Le Drian in an interview with French radio station Europe 1. “It is urgent. Daesh (IS) is taking territory, starting from Sirte and seeking to move down toward the oil fields”.
There had to be an accord between Libyan rivals otherwise IS “would win”. He added that he believed a political agreement was possible if those involved realised the risks of failure.
The wide-ranging interview, which looked at France’s response to the Paris massacre, came two days after the UN Security Council’s unanimous agreement on a resolution authorising “all necessary measures” against international terrorism. Though the resolution specifically mentioned Iraq and Syria, it is being taken to extend wherever the IS and Al-Qaeda franchises have been extended, including Libya where the UN has proscribed Ansar Al-Sharia as an Al-Qaeda offshoot.
Le Drian said that it was in the interest of Libya’s neighbouring states to push for a political accord so that terrorists in the country could be confronted.
“Daesh has been profiting from [Libya’s] internal rivalries,” he said, “If you united the forces of Tobruk and Tripoli against Daesh, it would not exist any more”. [/restrict]
