Libya sets date to replace PM

BENGHAZI, Libya: Libya’s parliament announced on Monday it would meet next week to pick a replacement for interim Prime Minister Abdelhamid Dbeibah, potentially escalating tensions between the country’s eastern and western factions.

The announcement, a month after planned elections were abandoned amid bitter arguments over their legal basis, lays bare once again the extent of divisions between eastern and western factions in the war-torn country.

Spokesman Abdallah Bliheq said the assembly, based in the country’s east, was ready to start examining applications for the role, and that candidates would face hearings in the house on February 7.