Libyan minister survives assassination attempt in Tripoli
Libya’s cabinet affairs minister, Adel Juma, has been injured in a failed assassination attempt in Tripoli on February 12th.
According to Daily Sabah, the Government of National Unity(GNU) released the information in a statement made on the same day as the attack.
The GNU, which is formally recognised by the UN, strongly condemned the attack, saying Juma is in “in stable condition” after “shots were fired at his car” by an unknown attacker. Reports have suggested Juma was shot in the leg.
They also said an investigation has been opened “to track down the perpetrators”, going on to say it “will not tolerate any attempts that threaten the security and stability of the state.”
Juma has overseen the coordination between Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibah’s office and other ministries for the Libyan government since March 2021, he is considered as one of Dbeibah’s most close advisors.
In 2021, the interior minister of the then Government of National Accord (GNA), Fathi Bashagha, survived a similar assassination attempt on a highway in Tripoli.
The minister’s assassination attempt happened amid UN efforts to bring Libya to elections to resolve the crisis between the two rival governments.
It is hoped that the long-awaited elections will end the political and armed conflicts, also ending the transitional period that has been in play since the ousting of Moammar Gadhafi’s regime in 2011.
This violence comes shortly after a key North African Summit was held in Tripoli in January, seeing leaders from across the region meet to discuss trade agreements.
Daily Sabah, Maghrebi, The International Institute for Strategic Studies
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