Video: Stephanie Williams, the deputy head of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya for political affairs, told UN Security Council members on Sept. 2, 2020 that "it is imperative that you use your influence to impress on all sides that now is the time for restraint." (Xinhua)

"The mission continues to receive reports of large-scale presence of foreign mercenaries and operatives, further complicating local dynamics and chances of a future settlement," says Stephanie Williams.

UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 2 (Xinhua) -- A United Nations official in Libya on Wednesday urged the Security Council to press for an immediate de-escalation of tensions and a return to negotiations, following the call from rival political leaders for a ceasefire on Aug. 21.

"It is becoming a regrettable cliche to appear before you and warn that Libya is at a critical juncture, but yet I am compelled to pronounce these same words again," Stephanie Williams, the deputy head of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya for political affairs, told Council members via video-teleconference.

"Libya is indeed at a decisive turning point. Your support - not only in words, but most importantly in action - will help determine whether the country descends into new depths of fragmentation and chaos or progresses towards a more prosperous future," she added.

Updating the situation since Secretary-General Antonio Guterres briefed the Council on Libya in early July, Williams said that an uneasy standoff continues around the city of Sirte, imperiling the lives of its 130,000 inhabitants as well as the country's vital oil infrastructure.

While the frontlines have remained relatively quiet since June, foreign sponsors are continuing to deliver advanced weaponry and equipment - in violation of a UN arms embargo - to the so-called Libyan National Army (LNA), or Libyan Arab Armed Forces, led by General Khalifa Haftar, and forces controlled by the internationally recognized GNA.

A fighter of the UN-recognized Libyan government gestures on a pickup truck in the Abu Qurain area about 300 kilometers east of the Libyan capital Tripoli, July 20, 2020. (Photo by Hamza Turkia/Xinhua)

"The mission continues to receive reports of large-scale presence of foreign mercenaries and operatives, further complicating local dynamics and chances of a future settlement," she said, adding that reports of imminent offensives - often through social media - "exacerbate the rate of miscalculation."

"It is imperative that you use your influence to impress on all sides that now is the time for restraint," she said.

Adding to the sense of instability are worsening socio-economic conditions that are fueling popular unrest - notably in the capital Tripoli - and threating the fragile calm required to move political and security talks forward, she added.

"The surge in the use of hate speech and incitement to violence - occasionally stirred through foreign-based media outlets and electronic armies - appears designed to further divide Libyans."

The COVID-19 pandemic meanwhile appears to be spiraling out of control in Libya, with the number of confirmed cases more than doubling in the past two weeks, with 15,156 cases and 250 recorded deaths as of Tuesday.

Fighters of the UN-backed Libyan government's forces are seen in the Qasr bin Ghashir area, southern Tripoli, Libya, on June 4, 2020. (Photo by Hamza Turkia/Xinhua)

"Nearing full collapse after more than nine years of conflict, the health care system is unable to respond to the additional weight placed by COVID-19 patients along with maintaining normal health services," she said.

While the UN and its partners are providing medical supplies and increase public awareness of the coronavirus, the Libyan authorities must "cooperate transparently" in a joint fight to control the outbreak, she added.

Underscoring humanitarian challenges, she emphasized that migrants, refugees and asylum-seekers - "at great risk to their lives" - are still trying to cross the Mediterranean Sea to Europe, including 45 people who perished on Aug. 18 when their boat sank off Libya's east coast.

With more than 7,000 migrants and refugees attempting the crossing this year, and more than 300 killed whilst doing so, she said European countries should consider "a more humane and predictable disembarkation mechanism" in line with their international human rights and search and rescue obligations.

"Libya cannot be considered as a safe port for disembarkation," she said, noting that almost 2,400 migrants and refugees are in official detention centers in Libya where their human rights are routinely violated. ■