Hifter supporters rally amid tensions in Libya

Libya's military commander Khalifa Hifter proposed what he said was a plan to pave "the way for building a civil state", speaking at supporters at a rally in Marj following an escalation in the war-torn country's violent standoff.

The fight for the country's capital has been raging for nearly a year between Hifter's forces, which are allied with a rival government based in eastern Libya, and an array of militias in the west loosely linked to the UN-supported authorities in Tripoli.

Amidst increased international pressure on both sides to halt the violence over concerns about the spread of the new coronavirus, the president of Libya's Eastern-based House of Representatives proposed to form a presidential council by consensus or vote among Libyan regional representatives and under the supervision of the United Nations.

Aguila Saleh's proposal included the formation of a committee of experts and intellectuals to develop and draft a constitution for the country, after which presidential and parliamentary elections would be organized.

Earlier, Libyan Arab Armed Forces (LAAF) commander Field Marshal Khalifa Hifter accused the UN-backed Government of National Accord, led by Fayez al-Sarraj, of committing a number of crimes.

After Hifter's speech, large groups of people took to the streets in support of him and the Libyan National Army, chanting slogans against the Presidential Council and against Turkish military intervention in the country.

Eastern-based forces under the command of Khalifa Hifter have been laying siege to Tripoli since last April, trying to wrest the city from the U.N.-backed government.

The fighting has settled into a chaotic stalemate. Buttressed by Turkish air power, Western militias have  allied with the beleaguered Tripoli government, reversed the tide in recent weeks and regained lost ground along the western coast.

GNA forces last weekend attacked Tarhuna, the main western stronghold and supply line of Hifter's forces 72 km (45 miles) southeast of Tripoli.

In recent weeks, Hifter's forces have escalated their use of Grad rockets and artillery shells in Tripoli's densely populated neighborhoods, which by nature cannot be fired precisely and place civilians at grave risk.

Hifter's march on the capital has so far resulted in a military stalemate, killed hundreds of civilians and displaced tens of thousands.