Egypt’s leader meets with Libyan officials to push for vote

CAIRO (AP) — Egypt’s president has met with Libya’s parliament speaker and a powerful military commander as Cairo pushes for the withdrawal of foreign forces and mercenaries from its western neighbor. President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi received Speaker Aguila Saleh and Gen. Khalifa Hifter, commander of the self-styled Libyan Arab Armed Forces, in Cairo. El-Sissi says his government “would continue its efforts with all Libyan brothers … to hold the significant presidential and parliamentary vote by the end of this year.” Libya has been wracked by chaos since a NATO-backed uprising toppled longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi in 2011. An interim government rules the country through elections in December.