Libya's Mufti Renews Warning Against Government Power-Sharing Deal With Haftar, Faults Tripoli Cell Probe Delays

Grand Mufti Sheikh Al-Sadiq Al-Gharyani warned the Dbeibah government on Thursday, September 24, 2026 against entering a power-sharing arrangement with Khalifa Haftar — reportedly the US-brokered plan under which Dbeibah would stay prime minister while Saddam Haftar assumes the presidency — cautioning the government could become 'its first victim.' Al-Gharyani accused the government of concealing what he called a 'major conspiracy' orchestrated by foreign states, chiefly the UAE, which he described as 'the claw of the Zionists,' and criticized the Presidential Council for distrusting domestic investigations in favor of international involvement. He separately faulted the Attorney General's office for resolving minor cases quickly — citing the plane crash in Misrata — while investigations into more serious matters, including the Derna disaster and Arkenu Oil Company affairs, saw little progress. On the economy, he addressed unequal wage increases and urged a unified salary scale, subsidy reform, and a crackdown on fuel smuggling by what he termed 'family-run brigades.'