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Pope Francis during his Sunday Angelus speaks of the crisis in Libya making particular mention of an important summit taking place in Berlin which aims to find a solution to the current situation.

The Pope expressed the hope that the conference would be the start of a path towards an end to violence and a negotiated solution leading to peace and much-desired stability in the country.

The UN estimates that the country's conflict has killed hundreds of people and displaced thousands more.

Germany is bringing together the key players in Libya's long-running civil war in a bid to determine the North African nation's future.

Also in attendence is Russian President Vladimir Putin, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the UK's Boris Johnson and the UN.

As talks continued on Sunday there was a call for all parties to refrain from hostilities against oil facilities.

Conflict has been rife in Libya since the 2011 uprising which ousted long-time leader Muammar Gaddafi.

A truce was announced earlier this month between Gen Khalifa Haftar's Libyan National Army (LNA) and the rival and UN backed Government of National Accord (GNA), led by Prime Minister Fayez al-Serraj. However, both sides have blamed eachother for breaches of the accord.

Listen to Nathan Morley's report

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Pope appeals for a peaceful solution to the crisis in Libya - Vatican News

Energy

Oil has had a strong start to the day, with ICE Brent touching US$66/bbl in early morning trading, following reports that forces loyal to Commander Haftar in Libya blocked oil exports, as fighting in the country continues. The blockade has seen the National Oil Corporation (NOC) declare force majeure, and warn that production could fall to just 72Mbbls/d in the coming days once storage tanks are full. Prior to the blockade, Libya was producing around 1.2MMbbls/d. A prolonged disruption from Libya would be enough to swing the global oil market from surplus to deficit in 1Q20. While, if a disruption of this magnitude was to last through until 2Q20, it would be enough to bring the global market to balance over the second quarter. Disruptions for the market do not stop there. In Iraq, OPECs second-largest producer, the 70Mbbls/d Al Ahdab oilfield was forced to shut, with security guards blocking access to the oilfield, as they seek permanent employment contracts. Meanwhile, there are reports that the 50Mbbls/d Badra oilfield is at risk of having to shut today as well.

Looking at the Commitment of Traders report, there was little change in speculative positioning in ICE Brent over the last reporting week. However NYMEX WTI saw significant liquidation, with speculators selling 62,636 lots over the reporting week, to leave them with a net long of 225,794 lots as of the 14th January. Meanwhile looking at Henry Hub natural gas, speculators continued to increase their net short over the last reporting period, selling 19,528 lots, leaving them with a net short of 269,944 lots - a record net short. However, this position is likely to be even larger at the moment, with Henry Hub coming under renewed pressure more recently, which has seen prices fall below US$2/MMBtu. This weakness is really reflective of the state of the global gas market, where all regions have an abundant supply. In the US natural gas inventories stand at 3.04Tcf, which is 494Bcf above levels seen at the same stage last year, and 149Bcf above the 5-year average. Meanwhile, forecasts for warmer than usual weather in the US havedone little to offer support to the US market.

Finally looking at the week ahead, and in terms of data releases, it will be fairly quiet for the oil market. Today the US is off for Martin Luther King Jr Day, and as a result, the usual US releases will be delayed by a day. API inventory numbers will be published on Wednesday, while the EIA weekly report will come out on Thursday.

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The Commodities Feed: Libya oil disruptions - ING Think

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey has become the Tripoli governments last major patron, providing armed drones, armored vehicles and, in the past week, Turkish troops.

Turkish officials say their troops will act mostly in an advisory role and avoid front-line combat. But there are indications, from American officials and from videos posted on the internet, that Ankara has deployed Syrian irregulars to Libya, drawn from units that fought the Kurds in northeastern Syria last year.

The increasingly prominent foreign role drew an angry rebuke from the United Nations envoy to Libya, Ghassan Salam, who told reporters on Monday that probably thousands of foreign mercenaries had arrived in Libya to participate in the fight.

The battle has displaced 300,000 people and caused over 2,200 deaths.

Mr. Salam blamed one of Mr. Hifters foreign backers he didnt specify which one for a drone strike on a government military facility near Tripoli on Saturday that killed 30 unarmed military recruits. His message to every foreign power mired in the conflict, he said: Get out of Libya.

In Brussels on Tuesday, the foreign ministers of Britain, Germany, France and Italy, as well as Josep Borrell, the foreign policy chief of the European Union, issued a joint statement condemning the continuing outside interference in the conflict.

Mr. Borrell singled out Turkey for criticism.

We asked for a cease-fire and we asked also to stop escalation and external interference, which has been increasing in the past days, he told reporters. It is obvious that this makes a reference to the Turkish decision to intervene with their troops in Libya.

Located about halfway along Libyas Mediterranean coastline, Surt has long straddled the geographic and political fault lines that divide eastern and western Libya, said Frederic Wehrey, a Libya specialist at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

Read more:
Libya Rebels Capture Key Coastal City in Threat to U.N.-Backed Government - The New York Times

GhassamSalam, head of the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL),was speaking to reportersin New Yorkon Monday, following a closed-door meeting of the Security Council.

It was heldafter dozens of cadets were killedthis past weekend in adroneattack on a military academyin thecapital, Tripoli, located in western Libyaand seat of theUN-recognized government.

Since April, the cityhas been undersiegeby the Libyan National Army (LNA), which is aligned with a rival administration in the east.

Theattackonthe military academyis the latest in a recent spike in aerial bombings andprobablywas carried out by a country supporting the LNA, according to Mr.Salam.

He called forothercountries to take your hands out of Libya,which is suffering fromincreasingforeign interferencein thelong-running factional conflict which hasleft the country in crisis sincethefall offormer dictatorMuammarGadaffiin 2011.

What I asked the Security Council,andwhat I askedthese countries,isvery clear: keep out of Libya. There are enough weapons in Libya; they do not need extra weapons. There are enough mercenaries in Libya,so stop sendingmercenaries as is the case right now with hundreds, probably thousands, coming into the country of late,he said.

There is a resolution calling foranarms embargoin Libya.Those who voted for this resolution are necessarily in need to implement it.If everybodyviolatesthe arms embargo, its a problem. But if those whovoted for it areviolating it,its an even bigger problem.

The UN envoydescribed the current situation in Libya as particularly difficult and bleak.

Ordinary people are paying dearly, with dozens of schools closed, health facilities attacked, and thousands displaced.

Mr.Salamstressed that there is no military solution to the conflict, which couldpotentially have animpactonfragileneighbouringcountries.

He stated:Libya is not only an oil story. Libya is not only a gas story. Libya is not only a geopolitical story: it is also a human story. And people are suffering, and for no other reason but for the fact that there is no international, clear message that enough is enough.

The United Nations is determined to find a way out of the current bleak situation, he said.

UNSMILhaslaunched a three-track process to bring thetwosides together to address the economic and financial situation, military and security matters, and political dialogue.

The firsttrackbegan on Monday, with representatives from the parties meeting in Tunis to discusseconomic and financial concerns, he reported.

I hope that in the next two weeksIwill be able to launchthe second track, concerningmilitary and securityissues: that is the ceasefire,thearms embargo, DDR(disarmament, demobilizationand reintegration)process,terrorism and counter terrorism, and these kindsof issues,he added.

And I am hopeful that before the end of this month we will be able to launch the political dialogue, probablyin Geneva.

Mr.Salamalsoexpressed hope thataconference will be heldinBerlinin the coming weeks togive an international "push to efforts underway on the ground.

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UN envoy appeals for other nations to 'keep out of Libya' - UN News

Hundreds of refugees and asylum seekers evacuated from Libyan detention centres to a transit camp in Rwanda are to be resettled this year in Norway, according to Rwandas foreign minister.

Speaking at a news conference in Kigali on Wednesday, Rwandas foreign minister Vincent Biruta said the African nation was currently hosting more than 300 refugees and asylum seekers at the Gashora transit centre south of Kigali, most of whom hail from Somalia, Sudan and Eritrea, according to CGTN Africa.

Only Norway and Sweden had so far agreed to resettle people from the camp, Biruta added. Norway agreed to resettle 600 people, while Sweden had so far accepted seven, according to Biruta.

Rwanda signed a deal with the UN and African Union in September aimed at resettling people who had been detained in Libya while trying to reach Europe. More than 4,000 people are believed to still be living in Libyan detention centres, according to the latest figures.

In a statement to Reuters, Norwegian justice minister Jran Kallmyr said the plan to resettle 600 people proved that we dont support cynical people smugglers, and instead bring in people who need protection in an organised manner.

Kallmyr added: A transit camp like the one in Rwanda will contribute to that effort.

Norways four-party government coalition agreed last year to accept a total of 3,000 refugees from UN camps in 2020.

The UN in Libya has come under intense criticism for complying with EU migration policy, which entails funding the Libyan coastguard to intercept boats with refugees and migrants destined for Europe. Many people end up detained in militia-run centres and subjected to grave human rights abuses, including sexual abuse, denial of food and water, and forced recruitment into the on-going Libyan conflict.

Elisabeth Haslund, Nordic spokesperson for the UN refugee agency, said that of the 4,000-plus people estimated to still be detained in Libyan centres, roughly 2,500 people are refugees and asylum-seekers.

As the violence and unrest have been intensifying in Libya and thousands of refugees are still at risk in the country, the evacuations of the most vulnerable refugees are more urgent than ever, said Haslund.

UNHCR very much welcomes Norways decision to resettle refugees who have been evacuated to Rwanda and also notes the important and valuable financial contributions from Norway to help support the operation of the transit centre in Gashora.

As the 600 people who are expected to be resettled this year in Norway had not yet been chosen, Haslund added, it was impossible to give details on their age, gender or country of origin.

Reuters contributed to this report

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Norway opens its doors to 600 people evacuated from Libya to Rwanda - The Guardian