Libyan politician Mahmoud Jibril has played a major role in politics there since the end of the revolution that saw the long-time regime of former leader, Muammar Gaddafi, toppled. Jibril served as the interim Prime Minister before the Libyan elections and now leads the National Forces’ Alliance, the party which won the most seats in the country’s new 200-member General National Congress, after the first election.

Libyan politician Mahmoud Jibril has played a major role in politics there since the end of the revolution that saw the long-time regime of former leader, Muammar Gaddafi, toppled. Jibril served as the interim Prime Minister before the Libyan elections and now leads the National Forces’ Alliance, the party which won the most seats in the country’s new 200-member General National Congress, after the first election.

He answers criticisms that his party is a one-man-band and discusses the controversial murder of one of Libya’s leading rebel commanders – something that happened while he was in charge and which has already seen several high ranking politicians questioned.

The National Forces Alliance (NFA) has been criticized for its emphasis on one person’s leadership: yours. But you say it’s an alliance that represents the nation. Can you explain that? 

An alliance like this is a new idea in the Arab region and it has come about after armed struggle, and after the Arab Spring revolutions.

Post-Gaddafi Libya is a society without a state since Gaddafi basically was the state – he marginalized the military and opposed institutions. So the NFA’s first objective was to foster national unity and national sovereignty. Our main interest is in uniting the country, rebuilding the state and instigating real development. No one will be excluded and Libyans will not suffer – this is the plan that has been welcomed by the Libyan people.

Some parties joined the NFA because they believed in that proposal, others were aware that their size wouldn’t allow them to compete with bigger parties – like the Justice and Construction Party [the Muslim Brotherhood’s political arm in Libya] or the National Front party, both of which have a longer history than many other political organizations here.  Some parties defected from the NFA when their candidates weren’t accepted in the elections but when the NFA did well in the elections, they apologized and wanted to re-join.

Unfortunately, the political scene is far from mature here. The people who voted for the NFA believe it is the only party that actually has a real platform that includes initiatives for education, health, youth, housing and unemployment. It also includes economic development, the rebuilding of the army and the formation of the police and provides a full vision for national reconciliation.

Other parties don’t have this. Which is why many of them are busy attacking the NFA or myself. This kind of negative campaigning happens when you have nothing to offer – so you occupy yourself attacking your enemy.

I would also add that the NFA was an idea and as such, it is not a politically rigid structure. We are now involved in restructuring at a basic level.

What happened to those smaller parties you were talking about, the ones who left and then wanted to come back?

They were not accepted.

If they were not trustworthy, then why did you accept them in the first place?

We accepted them because we thought they truly believed in the NFA Charter. And when someone signs the charter, we have no reason to doubt their intentions.

Today, some are saying the NFA is being controlled in a centralized manner, others say it is controlled by a small group of individuals or that it is dominated by businessmen and is just an alliance of money and politics. And still others believe that I am an authoritarian leader and that I am making all the decisions. 

These are the kinds of things that were said to justify the defections. But nobody mentioned the real reason: because the candidates they introduced to the NFA were not permitted to stand for office.

Recently one of Libya’s ex-interim leaders, Mustafa Abdul Jalil, was called for questioning over the assassination of former rebel commander, Abdel Fattah Younes – a man who was viewed with suspicion due to his previous links with the Gaddafi regime. As Qatar-based news service, Al Jazeera, reported: Younes, the highest-ranking military figure to join the uprising, was killed in July 2011 in murky circumstances after being recalled from the front line for questioning”. What are your thoughts on this?

Jalil is a national symbol. He united the Libyans at a time when we most needed it. I knew Jalil before the revolution – he’s a man of his word and a clean man. But it is also true that no one is above the law and that the truth must come out. The assassination of Younes was a crime that could have caused a real setback at the beginning of the revolution.

In fact Younes may well have been assassinated for trying to take steps to build a real military. I believe this is a good thing but some are totally against it.

Does that mean you think there’s a conspiracy behind Younes’ assassination?

I am simply saying that some people are against a real Libyan national army because it would mean that no foreigners can trespass onto Libyan soil. And other people have other plans.

However if someone is called for questioning, it should be done in a just and legal context.

Do you think there’s any danger of being arrested yourself? After all, you too were in charge – you headed the National Transitional Council at the time Younes was called back from the rebel front lines; and a few days later he was found assassinated?

I spoke with Jalil after his interrogation and he said that questions had been asked about me. But in fact, I was more occupied with foreign affairs at the time and was not actually engaged in running the executive office. That has been documented.  

What does worry me is that two days before the assassination of Younes, I was in Benghazi with Jalil.

So did you meet with Younes that day?

I did not meet him, God rest his soul, even though he used to send me an armoured car every time I came to Benghazi and his brother, Mohammed, would always come to the airport for me. This man was like a brother to me.

How did you receive the news of Younes’ death?

I came to Benghazi to inquire about the arms that had been sent to Libya at that time and that were supposed to be transferred to Tripoli – these had vanished somehow. The disappearance of these arms angered me because it would delay the uprising in Tripoli – and that’s why I was in Benghazi.

But nobody mentioned to me that they were about to summon Younes from the front lines. I don’t know why they didn’t. Maybe they thought I would be opposed to it. Only God knows.

So I travelled to Sudan with several others to try and obtain munitions. We heard about Younes’ death while we were in Khartoum at which stage I returned to Benghazi. I had a big argument with the members of the NTC there and I hope this will become public.

As it is, Jalil tells me he informed his questioners that I was in charge of foreign affairs at the time.