LIBYA SANCTIONS COMMITTEE APPROVES PILGRIMAGE FLIGHTS

8 March 1996

Press Release
SC/6191

LIBYA SANCTIONS COMMITTEE APPROVES PILGRIMAGE FLIGHTS

19960308 Following is the text of the statement issued today by the Chairman of the Security Council Committee established pursuant to resolution 748 (1992) concerning Libya, on behalf of the members of the Committee:

The Committee today approved a request dated 1 March 1996 from Egypt for 45 flights on Egypt Air from Cairo to Tripoli and Benghazi and on to Jeddah, and an equal number of return flights, for the purpose of transporting Libyan pilgrims to perform Haj.

Similar to the previous year, the Committee approved the Egyptian request with the following conditions: the Government of Egypt, will communicate to the Committee in advance, the exact schedule, routing and aircraft registration number for each flight; all flights shall be direct, non-stop between the authorized destinations; none of the aircraft shall be owned by, leased from or controlled by Libya or any Libyan entity; neither the Government or public authorities of Libya nor any Libyan undertaking shall, directly or indirectly, benefit financially from such flights, pursuant to paragraph 3 (a) and (b) of Security Council resolution 883 (1993); and pursuant to the guidelines approved by the Committee, the aircraft must be inspected to ensure that they are operating exclusively for the declared humanitarian purposes and in accordance with the relevant provisions of Security Council resolution 748 (1992). Accordingly, these inspections will be effected in the same manner as last year.

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