Libyan prime minister commits to elections

Libya's new interim prime minister said he was committed to the election calendar spelled out after the country's October liberation. Abdurrahim El-Keib was elected by the interim Transitional Council to serve as Libya's transitional prime minister. He takes over for Mahmoud Jibril, who stepped down Oct. 23, three days after the death of Moammar Gadhafi and two months after rebel forces captured Tripoli. El-Keib said the spirit of the Libyan revolution would guide his administration as it looked to form a new government in Tripoli. "We said we would (elect a Cabinet) a month from the liberation," he was quoted by al-Jazeera as saying. "We have two weeks left and we intend to meet that deadline." The former electrical engineer spent time teaching university courses in Alabama before becoming a representative for the TNC, his biography at the Petroleum Institute in Abu Dhabi states. He is listed as chairman of the department of engineering there. Ian Martin, the U.N. special envoy for Libya, told members of the Security Council last month that the United Nations was committed to helping Libya make preparations for national elections. Martin noted the TNC was committed to setting up a formal interim government within 30 days, establish electoral legislation in 90 days and hold elections for a national congress in less than a year. The U.N. Security Council voted to end the no-fly zone over Libya as of midnight Monday. NATO forces had been carrying out Operation Unified Protector since March.