TRIPOLI, Sept. 13 (Xinhua) -- UN Security Council decided on Thursday to extend the mandate of the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) until Sept. 15, 2019.

The extension decision was adopted in the UN Security Council Resolution 2434, UNSMIL said.

The UN mission has been leading mediation efforts between Libyan rival parties to put an end to the political division in the North African nation.

The UN Security Council appointed Ghassan Salame in July 2017 as the special representative of the UN secretary-general and head of the mission, replacing Martin Kobler.

Since the 2011 uprising that toppled the former leader Muammar Gaddafi's regime, Libya has been suffering escalating violence and political instability.