Cuts in US funding for the United Nations (UN) may hamper efforts to reunite war-torn Libya, where deadly fighting and protests in the capital have sent tensions soaring, a top UN official said.

The global body is pressing on with its latest bid to reconcile the OPEC member’s two duelling administrations and schedule landmark elections, yet the challenges are stacking up, according to Hanna Tetteh, head of the UN’s mission in Libya.

It’s unclear if Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibah will be able to reassert control in western Libya after his crackdown on militia rivals this month sparked rare demonstrations, while reduced UN financing will probably curb the effectiveness of the reunification drive, Tetteh said in an interview.

“We won’t be able to roll this out the way we had anticipated and that means it will be more difficult to get the public understanding and the public buy-in,” she said.

The UN mission would be the latest African initiative to suffer since Donald Trump returned to power and began reviewing US spending on a swathe of international programmes. America contributed about $13-billion to the UN’s collective budget in 2023, by far its largest donor, according to the Council on Foreign Relations.

Libyan initiatives will be impacted “because we are on the regular budget and this year Congress did not approve,” said Tetteh, a former Ghanaian lawmaker appointed in January. She didn’t say how much the US normally provides to the UN’s Libyan operations.

The US State Department didn’t respond to a request for comment.

Libya has been roiled by successive conflicts since the ousting of long-time ruler Muammar Qaddafi in 2011. The North African nation that’s home to the continent’s largest oil reserves is currently split between Dbeibah’s internationally recognised government in the capital, Tripoli, and rival authorities in the east, where military commander Khalifa Haftar holds sway. Energy production, often a casualty in Libya’s crises, hasn’t been affected by the latest turmoil.

Days of clashes erupted earlier in May between groups nominally loyal to Dbeibah, highlighting a perilous situation in the capital, where myriad militia compete to control key institutions, revenue streams and infrastructure.

After the leader of the so-called Stabilization Support Apparatus was killed by fighters aligned with Dbeibah, the pro-government 444 Brigade battled the Radaa force, which controls parts of eastern Tripoli. By the time a ceasefire was announced, at least eight people were dead.

Tetteh didn’t rule out the prospect of fighting resuming. Analysts have warned Dbeibah’s opponents may draw on support from militias beyond the capital to try and unseat him, spurring a potentially catastrophic new round of conflict.

Ordinary Libyans have taken to the streets since the clashes subsided, some calling for Dbeibah’s resignation. The premier, who was appointed under a UN-backed peace process in 2021 but stayed on after presidential elections were delayed indefinitely, has said he’s restoring security and state authority to Tripoli.

“Except for those who are actually in leadership at the moment, most Libyans are fed up with the current situation, want to see a change, but just don’t know how it is to be achieved,” Tetteh said.