TRIPOLI, Libya: Libya’s Prime Minister Abdullah al-Thinni Monday won the blessing of parliament for his proposed Cabinet of 13 ministers, after a previous lineup was rejected.

 

Thinni and the internationally recognized parliament, elected in June, are in virtual domestic exile in the city of Tobruk because of widespread insecurity, including in the capital, where a rival administration has been set up. He was charged in early September to form a new Cabinet after a toothless interim team resigned late August.

 

But parliament last week rejected Thinni’s first proposal of a new 18-member Cabinet, calling instead for a smaller team. On Monday, he won approval, “with 110 votes out of 112 present,” parliament spokesman Fradj Abu Hashem said.

 

The new Cabinet includes three deputy prime ministers. 

The crucial defense portfolio which has until now been occupied by Thinni remains vacant.