The Libyan UN-backed government on Monday decided to cooperate with the security services of eastern Libya.

Despite the signing of a UN-sponsored political agreement in 2015, Libya remains politically divided between a western and an eastern government.

Fathi Bashagha, Libyan interior minister, granted permission to all departments and security directorates of the ministry to officially contact their counterparts in the east, according to a ministry statement.

On Saturday, a group of police and security officers from different parts of the country met in the eastern city of Benghazi with the aim of uniting security efforts

Libyan security services struggle to improve security in the country, which has been suffering escalating violence and political division since the fall of former leader Muammar Gaddafi’s regime in 2011.

Xinhua