Libya inaugurates newly elected parliament

Three-quarters of Libya's newly elected parliament held its first official meeting in the eastern city of Tobruk on Monday, even as militias continue to battle each other in this oil-rich, North African nation's largest cities. The 200-member parliament was elected at the end of June and will take over from the previous assembly which was dominated by Islamist groups including the Muslim Brotherhood. The new body's real power remains in question as the armed militias that overthrew Moammar Gadhafi in 2011 fight each other for control of the country. In the last few weeks, 230 people have been killed and nearly 1,000 injured as the capital's airport has been destroyed and thousands of Libyans and foreigners have crammed the bordering crossing with Tunisia in effort to escape. ’Libya is not a failed state,’ maintained newly elected parliamentarian Abu Bakr Baeira as he addressed his fellow deputies and called for help from the international community. ‘If the situation were to get out of control in Libya, the whole world will suffer.’ The session took place in Tobruk because the country's main city in the east, Benghazi, was deemed too dangerous as Islamist militias battle troops loyal to renegade general, according to AP.