Monday saw the return to Tripoli of Libya’s prime minister, Abdul-Hamid Dbeibah, who boarded a commercial flight from Rome’s Fiumicino airport. In ten years, there hasn’t been a direct flight connecting these two nations.
The aircraft touched down in Mitiga, the capital of Libya’s only operational airport.
The Italian government decided earlier this month to relax a 10-year ban on civil aviation in the North African country, and the Libyan prime minister announced on Monday that Libyans will be able to book direct flights to Italy starting in September.
“God willing, commercial flights for residents will begin in September. Of course, there is still a ton of work to be done. However, there is no denying that what we have accomplished today will significantly aid the problem of lifting.
The head of the Italian Civil Aviation Authority, Pierluigi Di Palma, expressed his thoughts on the subject, saying: “I believe that Libyan flights to Italy will be feasible next September. Today is a significant day for us, and I believe it is a significant day for you as well. The Mediterranean Sea is, in my opinion, the sea of peace.
The ITA flight was praised by the office of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in Rome as yet another concrete example of the approach that the Italian government wishes to take in its dealings with Libya and the countries of the larger Mediterranean region.
In their joint effort to stop the flow of refugees into Europe, the two prime ministers are allies.
Migration from Africa and the Middle East to the old continent frequently passes through Libya.
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