5 Years After Gadhafi’s Fall, Is Libya Any Closer to Political Stability?

After five years of violence and political instability, Libya may be on the verge of forming a stable government.
5 Years After Gadhafi’s Fall, Is Libya Any Closer to Political Stability?
Libyans wave their national flag during a demonstration marking the fifth anniversary of the Libyan revolution, which toppled strongman Moammar Gadhafi, in the city of Benghazi, the 2011 uprising's birthplace, on Feb. 17, 2016. Abdullah Doma/AFP/Getty Images
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After five years of violence and political instability, Libya may be on the verge of forming a stable government, after the self-declared administration in Tripoli stepped down in favor of the U.N.-backed unity government. But the violent political conflicts that have wracked the country since 2011 are far from resolved.

It wasn’t meant to be this way. Many Libyans were optimistic about the future of their country after the elections of July 2012. An autocratic leader had been overthrown and there were high hopes that the coming period would be one of democracy and freedom.

Expressing the mood of the time, the elected leader Mahmoud Jibril declared that “the Libyan people have managed to prove one thing: they are the real decision makers. That the destiny of this country is not in the hands of an individual, of any political force or political party. It’s only in their hands.”

Libyans take part in celebrations marking the fifth anniversary of the Libyan revolution, which toppled strongman Moammar Gadhafi, at Martyrs' Square in the capital Tripoli, on Feb. 17, 2016. (Mahmud TUrkia/AFP/Getty Images)
Libyans take part in celebrations marking the fifth anniversary of the Libyan revolution, which toppled strongman Moammar Gadhafi, at Martyrs' Square in the capital Tripoli, on Feb. 17, 2016. Mahmud TUrkia/AFP/Getty Images
Natasha Ezrow
Natasha Ezrow
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