Background
Libya’s rival authorities failed to agree on a unity government. In August the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) unveiled a plan for holding long-delayed presidential and legislative elections.
In July and August, elections were cancelled or delayed in 20 municipalities due to interference by armed groups affiliated with the self-proclaimed Libyan Arab Armed Forces (LAAF), in control of eastern and southern Libya.
In September the Government of National Unity (GNU) and the Deterrence Apparatus for Combating Terrorism and Organized Crime (DACTO) militia, also known as al-Radaa, reached an agreement to prevent an anticipated escalation of armed clashes in the capital, Tripoli, according to media reports. Al-Radaa continued to maintain influence over Mitiga airport and held an undisclosed number of detainees at the end of the year.
Greek and EU officials called for renewed engagement with Libyan rival authorities on migration control following a surge in refugees, asylum seekers and migrants arriving by sea to Greece. On 15 October, Italy’s Chamber of Deputies confirmed the renewal of the Italy-Libya Memorandum of Understanding on migration cooperation for another three years, maintaining significant material and technical support to the GNU’s Libyan Coast Guard (LCG).
Arbitrary detention and unfair trials
Thousands continued to be arbitrarily detained solely for their tribal or political affiliations, following grossly unfair trials or without legal basis.
In July the Tripoli-based Public Prosecutor announced that, during the first half of the year, the prosecution ordered the release of 258 detainees arbitrarily held by al-Radaa in Mitiga Prison in Tripoli. On 15 April a Tripoli court sentenced nine Libyan men, one Libyan woman and one Pakistani man to prison terms ranging from three to 15 years on charges including insulting religion, promoting banned groups and advocating constitutional change. The convictions followed a grossly unfair trial.1
On 2 November the Constitutional Court ruled that the House of Representatives’ Law No. 4 of 2017, on the trial of civilians before military courts for terrorism-related offences and crimes against the state, was unconstitutional.
Torture and other ill-treatment
Torture and other ill-treatment remained systematic in prisons and detention facilities nationwide. Reported methods included beatings, electric shocks, sexual violence and stress positions. “Confessions” extracted under torture continued to be published online by militias and armed groups.
In January, videos circulating on social media showed a group of men in camouflage uniform and plain clothes subjecting detainees inside the LAAF-controlled Gernada prison, 250km north-east of Benghazi, to torture and other ill-treatment including beatings with iron rods. On 16 January the Military Prosecutor of the LAAF announced investigations, but no additional information was made public during the year. Detainees at the prison continued to be held in overcrowded and poorly ventilated rooms and denied adequate healthcare.
In May, videos emerged on social media showing parliamentarian Ibrahim al-Dersi shirtless in a dimly lit, confined space with concrete walls. He bore visible signs of torture and a metal chain and large padlock were fastened around his neck. In the videos, he pleaded to Saddam Haftar, the effective commander of the Tariq Ben Zeyad (TBZ) armed group, for his release. Ibrahim al-Dersi’s fate and whereabouts remained unknown since his disappearance on 16 May 2024 in Benghazi.
Freedom of expression, association and assembly
Armed groups and militias arbitrarily arrested and detained activists, protesters, journalists and online content creators simply for exercising their rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly.
On 14 May, militias affiliated with the GNU opened fire at protesters to disperse anti-GNU demonstrations in Abu Salim neighbourhood and Martyrs’ Square in Tripoli. At least three individuals were injured in the shootings, according to Libya Crimes Watch.
Unlawful attacks
On 12 May, after news emerged of the killing of one of the most powerful militia leaders in Tripoli – Abdel Ghani al-Kikli, known as “Gheniwa” – armed clashes erupted in densely populated residential areas between rival militias including the GNU-affiliated Brigade 444, al-Radaa, and the Stability Support Authority. The clashes involved the use of large-calibre weapons, including anti-aircraft guns, in an improper and imprecise way. A Tripoli-based NGO reported that 53 civilians died in the clashes.
The Ministry of the Interior announced it had received 69 reports from residents of Tripoli whose property, including houses and cars, were damaged.
Impunity
In May the GNU dissolved the Department of Operations and Judicial Security (DOJS), and integrated its members into the Ministry of the Interior. It did so without conducting individual vetting to exclude and hold accountable those reasonably suspected of involvement in well-documented crimes under international law against Libyans, migrants, asylum seekers and refugees.
Following the dismissal in May of Lotfi al-Harari, former head of the Internal Security Agency (ISA), authorities failed to investigate torture and other crimes under international law that were allegedly committed under his command.
In July the Public Prosecutor issued arrest warrants for 172 members of the Stability Support Authority (SSA) militia – which had been under the command of “Gheniwa” (see above) – in connection with incidents of murder, torture, abduction and arbitrary detention. The prosecution ordered the detention of 11 individuals but did not address the status of the remaining suspects.
In August the ICC unsealed the arrest warrant issued initially on 10 November 2020 against Saif Suleiman Sneidel, a member of Group 50, an armed sub-group of the Al-Saiqa Brigade, affiliated with the LAAF. Saif Suleiman Sneidel is accused of committing the war crimes of murder, torture and outrages upon personal dignity in Benghazi or surrounding areas. He and seven other Libyans under arrest warrant by the ICC remained at large.
In September the UN Human Rights Council adopted a resolution renewing its technical assistance and capacity building in Libya, which fell far short of the investigative and monitoring mechanism advocated by NGOs and therefore risked further entrenching impunity.
In November the Public Prosecutor ordered the detention of Osama Njeem – the former head of the DOJS and long-term member of al-Radaa militia – against whom the ICC had issued an arrest warrant. The detention order was issued in connection with incidents of torture and other cruel and degrading treatment of inmates at Mitiga Prison, and a death in custody. In January, Italy had arrested Osama Njeem but failed to surrender him to the ICC and returned him to Libya. In October the ICC found that Italy had failed to comply with its international obligations under the Rome Statute by not properly executing the court’s request for the arrest and surrender of Osama Njeem while he was on Italian territory.
On 1 December the German authorities surrendered Khaled Mohamed Ali El Hishri (also known as “Al-Buti”) – another senior and long-term member of al-Radaa militia – to the ICC. The ICC had issued a warrant for his arrest for crimes against humanity and war crimes, also in connection to incidents at Mitiga Prison.
Discrimination
Women and girls
Women faced discrimination in law and practice, including in matters relating to marriage, child custody, nationality rights, access to political office and employment.
In March the Tripoli-based ISA arrested a social media content creator on baseless charges of “producing and displaying pornographic material” after she shared personal content. The prosecution ordered her pretrial detention for 10 days.
LGBTI people
Consensual same-sex sexual relations between adults remained criminalized. The ISA in Tripoli and other militias and armed groups arrested at least nine individuals in Tripoli on the basis of their actual or perceived gender identity and/or sexual orientation, according to Libya Crimes Watch.
In February the Agency for Supporting Security Directorates in the Regions, a militia affiliated with the Ministry of the Interior, published a video showing nine men and two women “confessing” to committing “homosexuality” and “forming a network to spread HIV”.
Ethnic minorities and Indigenous Peoples
Members of the Tebu and Tuareg communities, who lacked national identity cards owing to discriminatory laws and regulations governing Libyan citizenship, faced barriers in accessing education and health services.
Between August and October the Subul al-Salam Battalion – an armed group under LAAF command – and the LAAF-affiliated police in the district of Kufra carried out unlawful killings, arbitrary arrests and enforced disappearances against members of the Tebu community in Kufra district, based on their ethnic origin.
Refugees’ and migrants’ rights
Across Libya, security forces, militias and armed groups and other non-state actors continued to commit widespread and systematic human rights violations and abuses with impunity against refugees, asylum seekers and migrants.
The EU-backed LCG in western Libya and the LAAF-affiliated Libyan Special Naval Forces and TBZ armed groups in eastern Libya intercepted at least 26,940 refugees, asylum seekers and migrants at sea and forcibly returned them to Libya.
On 24 August, LCG officials fired gunshots at the NGO rescue ship Ocean Viking from an EU-funded boat donated by Italy. On 26 September, LCG officials fired shots at a Sea-Watch NGO rescue ship. The European Commission stated that Libyan authorities had launched an “investigation” into the latter incident.
In May, the GNU dissolved the Directorate for Combating Illegal Migration (DCIM), a department nominally overseen by the Ministry of the Interior but with its own budget, replacing it with a new body, the General Administration for Combating Illegal Migration under the Ministry of the Interior. The decision led to the closure of most DCIM migration detention centres in Tripoli, excluding the Tajoura detention centre. DCIM detention centres in eastern Libya also remained operational. According to UNHCR, the UN refugee agency, at least 5,818 refugees, asylum seekers and migrants continued to be held by the DCIM across Libya. Thousands more were held directly by armed groups and militias in unofficial detention centres.
Refugees, asylum seekers and migrants were held in cruel and inhuman conditions in both DCIM and unofficial detention centres.
Libyan Border Guards (affiliated with the Ministry of the Interior), the DCIM and armed groups arbitrarily arrested hundreds of refugees, asylum seekers and migrants who had been collectively expelled and transferred to Libya by Tunisian and Algerian authorities (see Tunisia entry).
Armed groups affiliated to LAAF continued to collectively and forcibly expel thousands of refugees, asylum seekers and migrants without due process.
On 7 and 8 February, two mass graves containing a total of 93 bodies were found in the Wahat (north-east) and Kufrah (south-east) districts following raids by the Ministry of the Interior on human trafficking sites.
In March, GNU-affiliated forces led a wave of racially motivated and mass arrests of sub-Saharan refugees, asylum seekers and migrants across western Libya. The crackdown coincided with an increase in speech inciting racial discrimination and violence against sub-Saharan Africans from Libyan social media users and GNU officials. This sparked racial violence leading to the death of a foreign national on 13 March in the city of Sabratha.
In March the Tripoli-based ISA also launched a crackdown on international humanitarian organizations assisting refugees, asylum seekers and migrants. It suspended the operations of 10 organizations for several months, subjecting staff members to unlawful interrogations and confiscating passports. On 9 October the Ministry of Foreign Affairs informed Médecins Sans Frontières that it had one month to close its operations in the country.
Death penalty
Libya retained the death penalty for a wide range of offences. Courts continued to impose death sentences for murder following grossly unfair trials. No executions were recorded.
Right to a healthy environment
Libya again failed to ratify the Paris Agreement or submit any formal plans for climate mitigation and adaptation. It remained one of the biggest fossil fuel producers in Africa.
