The Libyan House of Representatives dismisses the Prime Minister of Benghazi, and the Supreme Council of State describes the decision as "political absurdity" Today, Tuesday, the Libyan House of Representatives in Tobruk decided to suspend the duties of Fathi Bashagha, the Libyan Prime Minister appointed by Parliament, and to refer him for investigation. The spokesman for the council – loyal to Khalifa Haftar – Abdullah Blehaq said that Parliament voted by majority to suspend Bashagha and refer him for investigation. Blehaq added, on his Facebook page, that the House of Representatives assigned Finance Minister Osama Hammad to run the duties of prime minister, in addition to the Ministry of Finance. The House of Representatives did not explain the reasons that prompted him to suspend Bashagha from his work, and the violations that led to his referral for investigation. For his part, MP Tariq al-Jarushi said that the suspension came against the backdrop of the Parliamentary Administrative Oversight Committee submitting a report containing about 14 points, all of which condemn Fathi Bashagha. "The report carried many points, including negligence in work, waste of public money, unfulfilled promises and unimplemented projects," he added. Political absurdity In the reactions, the head of the High Council of State, Khaled Al-Mashri, accused the House of Representatives of practicing what he described as political tampering, against the background of Bashagha's arrest. Al-Mashri said, in a series of tweets, that the House of Representatives decided to suspend Bashagha in a suspicious manner, after he approved his government in a non-transparent manner, as he put it. He called on the House of Representatives to pay attention to the supreme interest of the state, in agreement with the Supreme Council of the State on a clear road map, leading to elections under a unified government. Bashagha had pre-empted the decision to arrest him by assigning his deputy, Ali Faraj Al-Qatrani, to run the government's tasks and to delegate to him all the powers granted to the prime minister. This came in a speech addressed by Bashagha to the Presidency and members of the House of Representatives yesterday, Monday, and published today, Tuesday, on his government's Facebook page. In his speech, Bashagha did not explain why his deputy was appointed or the duration of that mandate. In February 2022, the House of Representatives commissioned Bashagha to form a new government after he dismissed the national unity government headed by Abdul Hamid al-Dabaiba. In March of the same year, Bashagha formed a government, but he did not succeed in entering the capital, Tripoli, by force to take power, which prompted him to announce his government loyal to retired Major General Khalifa Haftar from Benghazi. This caused a political crisis, especially after Dabaiba refused to hand over power except to a government that comes through a new elected parliament, which called on the United Nations to conduct negotiations to reach elections to solve that crisis. The internationally recognized government of Dabaiba controls the entire Libyan west, and large areas in the south of the country.

The Libyan Parliament in Tobruk decided today, Tuesday, to suspend the duties of Fathi Bashagha, the Libyan prime minister appointed by Parliament, and to refer him for investigation.

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