Divisions that have riven Libya since 2011, when the dictatorship of Muammar Gaddafi was overthrown, have continued to prevent presidential elections initially scheduled for December 2018 from taking place.
To many observers, the delays appear to be the result of the entrenchment of political and military figures on all sides, and their preference for the present situation – even if the status quo has brought several political crises, debates over legitimacy, a financially damaging shutdown of oil facilities and a closure of some of the country’s main roads.
