Libya PM plans major cabinet reshuffle

Libyan Prime Minister Ali Zeidan said Wednesday he would soon announce a major cabinet reshuffle, after calls in the assembly for a vote of no confidence in his government. "There will be a large ministerial reshuffle next week or the week after," Zeidan said at a news conference. He said the portfolios affected would include that of interior minister, vacant since Mohammed Khalifa al-Sheikh resigned in August, as well as the posts of other ministers who wish to leave government. Last summer, Zeidan announced "an imminent reshuffle" several times without taking action. In little over a year in power, his government has come in for regular criticism for failing to restore stability more than two years after the fall of dictator Moamer Kadhafi. Several members of Libya's highest political authority, the General National Congress, have been trying to bring down the government, but have not succeeded in securing the number of votes required. On Tuesday, the GNC failed to agree on what action to take about Zeidan's government, after a censure motion put forward by 72 lawmakers. Discussions on the subject were pushed back to Wednesday before being further postponed to next week. Zeidan said his critics in the GNC are a "minority", but said he would "willingly" leave the post of premier if the assembly chose to replace him. "I do not want to leave the country in a vacuum," he said. Source: AFP