The High Council of State (HCS) has denounced the military parade in Benghazi Saturday, saying it was organized by "irregular and illegal forces led by war criminal Khalifa Haftar."

In a statement on Saturday, the Council considered the step a "serious breach and aggressive behavior," calling on the Presidential Council, in its capacity as the supreme commander of the Libyan army, to put an end to such violations and work to consolidate the ceasefire and unify the military institution.

The international community should refrain from supporting Haftar and work only with legitimate bodies and official authorities, the statement read.

However, it did affirm its support to any attempts to establish peace and advance the political process through dialogue, but underlined that this "does not mean neglecting the gains of the February 17th Revolution, the most important of which is the rule of law, the constitution, and the peaceful transfer of power."

The statement considered the military parade to be a further escalation and a threat of force coinciding with the Libyans' approach to a comprehensive political settlement. "This reflects a thirst to seize power by force, even at an ultimate price," the statement added.

It is noteworthy that Haftar's militias organized a military parade on Saturday to mark the seventh anniversary of the so-called Dignity Operation launched under the pretext of fighting terrorism.

Haftar gave a speech on this occasion and asserted that the war on Tripoli was right and that they are ready to return to war if what he called "the militias did not adhere to the political settlement."