Overview
Prime Minister-elect Ali Zidan was scheduled to announce his cabinet on 29 October. In the event, the announcement has been delayed until at least the 30 October, due to the absence of a significant number of members of congress who were still travelling back to Libya after Eid al Adha. Some reports have indicated that Zidan plans to submit up to 32 ministers, including cabinet positions for two or three women.
Reporting in the west of the country has again been dominated by activity in and around the town of Bani Walid, where the ongoing military action culminated last week. The Eid al Adha period has seen little reporting from elsewhere in the west of the country, with no significant incidents being reported in the capital. Libyan authorities reported that the national army was now in control of Bani Walid and that major military operations had been concluded. Libyan authorities also apologised for apparently false reports regarding the killing of Khamis Al Qadhafi and the capture of former regime spokesman Ibrahim Moussa last week, claiming that officials had made mistakes regarding the announcements. The main issue for Bani Walid now appears to be the return of significant numbers of refugees to the town.
The last week has seen several demonstrations in the Benghazi city area protesting a number of issues, ranging from the military action in Bani Walid to tighter Egyptian visa regulations and the integration of Benghazi’s hospital security personnel. Several homemade bombs were also reported to have been thrown at the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) building in Benghazi city on 27 October. Other reports focused on the continuing efforts to track down those persons involved in the 11 September attack on the US consulate in Benghazi, with separate reports of the death and arrest of individuals in both Egypt and Tunisia.