Kais Saeed falling afoul of Brotherhood in Libya, Tunisia

Sara Rashad

There is shock among the members of the Muslim Brotherhood in Libya and Tunisia at the remarks Tunisian President Kais Saeed made during his latest visit to Paris.

Saeed’s remarks bucked his country’s trend on the situation in Libya.

He described at a press briefing with French President Emmanuel Macron the legitimacy of the Tripoli-based Government of National Accord (GNA) as a “temporary” one.

“The GNA derives its legitimacy from the Skhirat agreement,” Saeed said. “The agreement stipulated the formation of a government that paves the road in Libya for the presence of an elected government.”

The Tunisian president even called on Libya’s tribes to draft a new constitution that serves everybody’s interests.

However, the Muslim Brotherhood described Saeed’s remarks as “controversial” and overlooking the situation on the ground in Libya.

The Justice and Construction Party, the political arm of the Muslim Brotherhood in Libya, criticized the Tunisian president.

The party accused Saeed of ignorance about the political crisis in Libya.

Party Chairman Mohamed Sawan said the Tunisian president did not have the simplest knowledge about the political crisis in Libya.

“By demanding that the tribes draft a constitution, Saeed wants to apply the Afghan model to Libya,” he added on his Facebook page.

He described the remarks of the Tunisian president as “ridiculous” and accused him of “snobbishness” in dealing with the “legitimate” government in Libya.

Head of the Libyan State Council, Khalid al-Meshri, also criticized Saeed.

He said at a press conference in Tripoli that tribes are not more than social umbrellas in Libya.

“They are not political parties,” al-Meshri said of the tribes. “You cannot apply the Afghan model to Libya.”