UN to hold conference in Libya in April to discuss way out of conflict

The United Nations will hold a conference in Libya in April to discuss a way out of the country’s eight-year conflict, a UN envoy said on Wednesday. However, it is not clear whether powerful factions will attend. The forum will be open to all Libyans and take place in the southwestern town of Ghadames on April 14-16, envoy Ghassan Salame said at the UN compound in Tripoli. “We hope it will be a new opening for the country for stability,” Salame said, adding that up to 150 participants would join. The envoy had unveiled the idea of a “national conference” in November to prepare the ground for elections. An initial plan to stage a vote on December 10 proved unrealistic given a lack of understanding between the main conflicting camps, Reuters said.