When Hanna Tetteh, the new UN envoy to Libya, unveiled her “roadmap for renewed political consensus” on 21 August, it was meant to signal a fresh start after years of stagnation. She assumed that two months, a kind of self-imposed deadline,  would be enough to implement the first stage of the plan. In her briefing to the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) that day, Tetteh outlined two immediate priorities: strengthening the capacity of the High National Elections Commission by recomposing and filling its vacant board seats, and finalising the legal framework for elections within two months.

Two months later, however, even this first benchmark — establishing a constitutional framework to guide elections — remains unmet. The United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) has yet to move beyond consultations and general statements, while the country’s rival authorities continue to trade blame and entrench their control. What was meant to be a time-bound roadmap is already following the familiar pattern of missed deadlines and fading credibility.

With nothing achieved since August, Tetteh openly shifted to a more confrontational tone. In her 14 October briefing to the Security Council, she warned: “Should our current engagement fail… UNSMIL must – and will – pursue another approach and seek the support of this Council to help ensure that the roadmap advances.” The remark captured a growing frustration within UNSMIL, but it also exposed how little progress had been made on the roadmap she announced two months earlier.

Since taking office, Hanna Tetteh has briefed the UNSC four times — in April, June, August, and October 2025 —........

© Middle East Monitor