Libyan Ministry faces public scrutiny after new relations talks
Without the presence of a delegation representing the French Republic, the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research said in a statement that it had discussed ways of academic development with France, as reported by LY Witness on August 9th.
The statement angered Libyans about who represents the French Republic in the meeting mentioned by the Ministry, and who represents Mohamed Hamouda in his position as Libya’s chargé d’affaires.
The Ministry of the Government of National Unity (GNU), led by Abdul Hamid Dbeibah in Tripoli, posted an image on its Facebook page of the Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, Mohamed Dbieb, with Hamouda, but without any representation of the French Republic.
Hamouda is the former spokesperson of Dbeibah’s government that came to power in 2021 under a UN-sponsored political agreement.
The Africa Intelligence website reported that Hamouda was offered the presidency of the Libyan consulate in Marseille, to which he moved just over a year ago, after the position remained vacant following Samir al-Taweel’s escape, who was sentenced in France on April 30th to a three-year suspended prison sentence on charges of corruption.
A retired Libyan diplomat told Al-Shahed, “What we see and hear represents primarily the chaos that prevails in the corridors of the Libyan Foreign Ministry, with high-level diplomatic positions held by figures who do not have the qualifications for such positions.”
The diplomat added: “The news is very strange and does not represent the Libyan diplomacy that Hamouda occupies today, so how can a Libyan official represent a foreign country in his country?”
The diplomat later spoke on how the events that have taken place contradict diplomatic norms, and that the Chargé d’Affaires “shall only represent his country to the host State, and shall not have the right to discuss major files as a representation of that State within his country.”
In a statement from the ministry, it was said that the meeting covered matters on several initiatives directed at building more effective paths for academics and research, while also looking to link Libyan universities to their French counterparts.
A senior official at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, who due to fears of retaliation preferred not to be named, stated: “Certainly such mistakes cannot be explained by logic when a former government spokesman who does not understand the ABCs in the diplomatic service takes office.”
LY Witness, Maghrebi.org.
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