Libya Lawmakers 'Create Army Chief Post for Haftar'

Libya's internationally recognized parliament created a new army chief post on Tuesday, with a lawmaker and state media saying the job will go to a once retired general fighting to eradicate Islamist forces.

"The chamber (of deputies) adopted today a law regarding the general leadership of the Libyan army," calling on parliament speaker Aguila Salah Issa to name a chief, MP Issa al-Aribi told Agence France-Presse.

Another MP said the law was adopted to "legitimize" General Khalifa Haftar, who calls himself chief of the Libyan National Army, and that he would be formally named in the "coming hours."

That was echoed by the Libya news agency LANA.

Last May, Haftar launched an offensive against Islamists in the country's east, earning himself the sobriquet of "rogue general" and being accused by the then government of trying to stage a coup.

But after Islamists seized the capital following elections in June and the new parliament fled to the country's far east, the internationally recognized authorities have gradually allied themselves with him.

Last month, they formally requested that he and 129 other retired officers return to active service.

On Monday, the parliament suspended its participation in U.N.-brokered talks on the future of the war-wracked North African state, and a formalization of Haftar's status could further complicate those efforts.

Fajr Libya, the coalition of militias that seized Tripoli and backs a rival government there against the one in the east, has rejected any political settlement that includes him.

The international community faces a daunting task to find a political solution to the lawless nation's political and military crisis.

Since the 2011 overthrow of strongman Moammar Gadhafi in a NATO-backed uprising, Libya has been awash with weapons and opposing militias are battling for control of its cities and oil wealth.