Khalifa al-Ghawil, sometimes transliterated as Khalifa al-Ghweil ( 1963) or Ghwell, is a

Libya Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...

n politician. He was the prime minister of the

General National Congress The General National Congress or General National Council (GNC; ) was the Legislature, legislative authority of Libya for two years following the end of the First Libyan Civil War. It was elected by popular vote on 7 July 2012, and took power f ...

-led

National Salvation Government The National Salvation Government () was a government body formed by politicians from the General National Congress's blocs that lost the June 2014 elections in Libya. The NSG was led by Khalifa al-Ghawil. The term Libya Dawn Coalition was ...

in Tripoli.

Biography

Prior to 31 March 2015, Al-Ghawil served as a deputy or aide to Omar al-Hassi, the prime minister of the disputed Tripoli-based government. After al-Hassi was fired as head of the GNC, Al-Ghawil was asked to serve as prime minister for one month, on a temporary basis. On 1 December 2015, he formed a new cabinet. The Prime Minister, of the United Nations-supported

Government of National Accord The Government of National Accord (GNA; ) was an interim government for Libya that was formed under the terms of the Libyan Political Agreement, a United Nations–led initiative, signed on 17 December 2015. The agreement was unanimously endors ...

(GNA),

Fayez al-Sarraj Fayez Mustafa al-Sarraj ( or ; born 20 February 1960) is a Libyan politician who served as the chairman of the Presidential Council (Libya), Presidential Council of Libya and List of heads of government of Libya, head of government of the Govern ...

, arrived in Tripoli on 30 March 2016. The following day, it was reported that the GNA has taken control of the prime ministerial offices and that the GNC-appointed Prime Minister Khalifa al-Ghawil had fled to

Misrata Misrata ( ; , Libyan Arabic: ; also spelled Misratah and known by the Italian spelling Misurata) is a city in northwestern Libya located in the Misrata District, situated to the east of Tripoli on the Mediterranean coast near Cape Misrata. ...

. On 5 April 2016, the National Salvation Government, which had been led by Al-Ghawil, announced that it was disbanding and conceded power to the Presidential Council. On 14 October 2016, the Presidential Guard revolted in Tripoli and proclaimed allegiance to GNC, took over the building of the High Council of State and announced the comeback of Ghawil cabinet. Then, fighting occurred between Sarraj loyalists and Ghawil forces. On 5 November 2016, he inaugurated the Power Station in Al Khums, a city controlled by forces loyal to GNS. The fighting spread to other areas of Tripoli on 14 March. The Pro-GNA forces had recaptured the Guest Palace complex as well as the Rixos hotel. The channel was taken off-air while Khalifa Al-Ghawil was also reported by one of his aides to have been injured in the clashes. An agreement called for withdrawal of all armed groups from Tripoli in 30 days. On 28 May, the 7th Brigade of the Presidential Guard (Al-Kani brigade) from

Tarhuna Tarhuna (; ), also Tarhoona or Tarhunah, is a Libyan village to the southeast of Tripoli, in the Murqub District. The Tarhuna District, including the city of Msallata, had an urban population of about 296,000 (est. 2003). The population in T ...

, took over the

Tripoli International Airport Tripoli International Airport () is a closed international airport built to serve Tripoli, the capital city of Libya. The airport is located in the area of Qasr bin Ghashir, from central Tripoli. It used to be the hub for Libyan Airlines, ...

as a neutral side after Misratan militias loyal to Khalifa Ghwell withdrew from there following two days of heavy clashes. By the next day, the city of Tripoli was fully under control of pro-GNA forces, with all pro-GNC forces withdrawing as a result of clashes with pro-GNA forces.

References

, - Libyan Islamists Living people Prime ministers of Libya 1964 births University of Benghazi alumni {{Libya-politician-stub