Libyan PM-designate alleges "fierce campaign of calumny" against his appointment

Libyan Prime Minister-designate Abdel Hamid Dbeibah on Tuesday denounced a "fierce campaign" aimed at "destroying" the country, presumably referring to the suspicions of corruption weighing on the process that led to his designation.

Mr. Dbeibah was speaking before the deputies, meeting in Sirte (east), calling on them at the same time to give confidence in his government to unify Libya, bruised by years of conflict and power struggles.

It is a "plot" and a "campaign" led by "those who want to destroy our country, who want to occupy it (...) we have no choice but to come to an agreement," he said.

According to the UN Committee of Experts in the annex of a still confidential report obtained in late February by AFP, the inter-Libyan dialogue sponsored by the UN and which led to the appointment of Mr. Dbeibah was tainted by corruption.

The report is due to be formally submitted to the 15 members of the UN Security Council by mid-March. Annex 13, which refers to corruption, may not be made public. The release of excerpts has caused an outcry in Libya.

Abdel Hamid Dbeibah had already defended the "integrity" of the process.

On Tuesday, he defended the composition of his government. "My first objective was to choose people I would be able to work with, no matter where they came from. They "must be able to work for all Libyans, " he hammered, before giving the floor to the MPs.

Libyan lawmakers began consultations Monday aimed at confirming a newly appointed government which would lead the country through elections by the end of the year.

The United Nations called the session "historic."

More than 130 members of the House of Representatives met in the coastal city of Sirte after Prime Minister-designate Abdul Hamid Dbeibah last week presented his proposed Cabinet to Speaker Aguila Saleh.