Despite some observers’ gloomy outlook on Libya, the Government of National Accord inaugurated on Saturday an elections affairs office. The Tripoli-based office will be dedicated to preparing all aspects of the polls, explained the interior ministry in a statement. It will coordinate its work with the higher elections commission and directly oversee the main elections operation room. The opening of the office is aimed at ensuring the soundness of the electoral process, lead the country towards safety and end divisions that have exhausted the people, it added. Rival Libyan forces had agreed during a Paris-hosted conference in May to hold presidential and parliamentary elections in December. Moreover, the interior ministry set a number of guidelines for peaceful demonstrations in the country. A handwritten request to hold a rally must be submitted to the local security directorate where a protest is set to be held. The request must detail the time and place of the rally and be submitted 48 hours before the planned protest, said the ministry. The security directorate reserves the right to grant or bar the rally in accordance to the law, it said. The ministry stressed that demonstrators are barred from brandishing weapons, even licensed ones. They must also respect public and private property.