Maetig Seizes Prime Ministry Building

After having the Libya Shield force help him occupy the PM's office, pseudo-Prime Minister Ahmed Matiq held his first cabinet meeting on June 2, escalating the confrontation between him and Abdullah Thinni over who has legitimate claim to the Prime Ministerial office. You can read more from the Libya Herald here. Despite a new vote in Matiq's favour, Thinni has refused to recognize the transfer of his power to Maiteeg until the GNC clarifies the vote in a procedurally sound way, despite an opinion from the GNC’s Legislative and Constitutional Committee that the vote was valid. Maiteeg’s cabinet met in the prime minister’s office on June 2, and Thinni has reportedly move to another government building.The conflict between the two prime ministers weakens the government’s ability to respond to the ongoing militia fighting instigated by General Khalifa Hafter, whose “Operation Dignity” has pledged to rid the country of “Islamist militias.” Hafter is conducting the operation without authorization from the government or the GNC. The conflict escalated over the weekend with aerial bombings against suspected Islamist strongholds in Benghazi.  What we are seeing is the logical conclusion of the increasing polarization between Islamist and anti-Islamist militias, local councils, and national political actors.  I sketched this conflict and provide the essential background for it in a think tank report I cowrote with Karim Mezran and Mohamed ElJarh for the Atlantic Council.  It is now available for purchase in hard copy by clicking here. It makes the essential reference work for any policy maker, consultant, or academic trying to make sense of militia/government relations as we present a comprehensive militia map as well as lay out the policies that both the Libyan and Western governments need to adopt to prevent the collapse of the transition process. The first step is to achieve a grand bargain between the major interested factions, the second step is to restart the transition process under clearly defined rules of the game.Elections for a House of Representatives to replace the GNC have been called for June. But the violence, and the triangular conflict between the GNC, Maiteeg, and Thinni, might make polling impossible. Matig's arrogation of  power of  the past days appears that a compromise between the two claimant PMs is unlikely.