By Zeinab Mohammed Salih.
New York, 20 September 2017:
Security had to be improved before his own people could resume their work fully in Libya, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said today in New York.
Grandi explained to reporters after the High-Level Libya meeting on the fringe of the UN General Assembly that the UN body had to follow certain rules on the safety of its staff.
“The security is very fragile” he said, “we have worked so far with national staff supported by international staff that conduct missions in Libya”.
What was needed, said Grandi, was the permanent presence of international staff in Libya.
“A lot of work has already been done but of course it has to be gradual and it has to follow the expansion of stability. And the responsibility is collective responsibility, not just a responsibility of one organisation. The responsibility lies with the national authorities but we know that Libya is very fragile so the international community has to support them”.
He said the UNHCR had the resources to do its work. The main challenges were security and the stability of state institutions.
