The EU also lauds the exceptional execution of FIFA 2022 in Qatar. It helped refine Qatar's reputation and correct misconceptions. The EU is commitment to strengthening relations with Islamic and Gulf Cooperation Council countries, and seeks to combat Islamophobia in Europe, Stano points out.

The Libyan people want to end a decade of violence and elect a government, showing "zero appetite" for further conflict despite a renewed political standoff, the UN's top in-country official told AFP.

Libya is less than a month from elections seen as crucial to ending its long-running civil war, but deep political divisions could provoke a delay or even fresh violence.

Libya and the UN have been striving to turn the page on the violence that has wracked the country since a 2011 NATO-backed uprising toppled and killed dictator Moamer Kadhafi. A ceasefire between eastern and western factions last year led to a unity government taking office in March with a...