INTRODUCTION
During November, grave violations against civilians in Libya persisted, perpetrated by security agencies and armed groups aligned with authorities in both the east and west of the country. These violations included extrajudicial killings, unlawful killings, and arbitrary detention, alongside the continuation of military operations in residential areas, all taking place amid a continued absence of any serious or effective measures to investigate and ensure accountability.
Throughout the month, the LCW field team documented the killing of a content creator as a result of direct gunfire in Tripoli. The team also documented the injury of at least five (5) civilians by stray bullets in residential neighbourhoods during live-ammunition military exercises in Tripoli, as well as the arbitrary arrest of four (4) community leaders in the city of Tarhuna.
In the context of migration, the LCW field team recorded the discovery of ten (10) bodies believed to belong to migrants washed ashore in the coastal cities of Sabratha, Al-Zawiya, Sorman, Al-Khums, and Tripoli, including four (4) Bangladeshi nationals. These incidents occurred against the backdrop of the authorities’ continued failure to take the necessary measures to protect migrants, strengthen search-and-rescue efforts, and prevent the recurrence of such tragedies.
Libya Crimes Watch (LCW) holds the Military Intelligence Directorate and the 444th Brigade, both under the Ministry of Defence of the Government of National Unity (GNU), as well as the Ministry of Interior of the GNU and the local authorities in the western coastal cities, fully legally responsible for the violations outlined in this report. These entities bear direct or indirect responsibility for perpetrating these abuses, or for failing to prevent them, protect civilians, and undertake serious and transparent investigations to hold those responsible to account.
LCW affirms that the violations documented in this report may not fully reflect the entirety of those committed during November. The report is confined to cases that the LCW field team documented and verified, with informed consent from the victims or their families. Publication has been limited to violations whose disclosure does not compromise confidentiality or pose risks to victims, survivors, or their relatives.
DETAILS
November 2
On 2 November, LCW recorded the discovery of one (1) unidentified body on the shoreline of Sabratha, believed to belong to a migrant. The body was recovered by the Libyan Red Crescent, Sabratha branch and transferred to the hospital for the completion of legal procedures.
On the same day, LCW recorded the discovery of another unidentified body on the shoreline of the Al-Mutrad area in the city of Al-Zawiya, also believed to belong to a migrant. It was recovered by the Libyan Red Crescent, Al-Zawiya branch and handed over to the local authorities to complete the legal procedures.
November 3
Between 1 and 3 November, LCW recorded the discovery of two (2) unidentified bodies on the shoreline of Sorman, believed to belong to two migrants. The bodies were recovered by the Libyan Red Crescent, Sabratha branch and handed over to the local authorities for the completion of legal procedures.
On the same day, 3 November, LCW further recorded the discovery of one (1) unidentified body on the shoreline of the Sileen area in Al-Khums. The body was recovered by the Libyan Red Crescent, Al-Khums branch and handed over to the local authorities to complete the legal procedures.
November 7
Between 7 and 8 November, LCW documented the arbitrary arrest of four (4) elders and community leaders from the city of Tarhuna, who were detained from their homes by armed personnel affiliated with the Military Intelligence Directorate under the Ministry of Defence of the GNU. The arrests followed several days after their meeting with the commander of the Libyan Arab Armed Forces (LAAF), Khalifa Haftar, in Benghazi. They were released on 14 November without any legal process, after seven days of arbitrary detention.
November 15
On 15 November, LCW recorded the discovery of four (4) bodies belonging to Bangladeshi migrants on the shoreline of Al-Khums, following the sinking of the vessel they were on board, along with twenty-six others, while attempting to reach Europe. The bodies were recovered by the Libyan Red Crescent, Al-Khums branch and handed over to the local authorities for the completion of legal procedures.
November 21
On 21 November, LCW documented the killing of content creator Al-Khansa Mohamed Abd Al-Majid Al-Mujahid (aged 34), after her vehicle was intercepted by armed personnel affiliated with the General Security Directorate of the Ministry of Interior of the GNU, who opened fire on her in the Janzour area west of Tripoli.
November 22
On 22 November, LCW recorded the discovery of one (1) unidentified body on the shoreline of Tajoura, east of Tripoli, believed to belong to a migrant. The body was recovered by the Libyan Red Crescent, Tripoli branch and handed over to the local authorities for the completion of legal procedures.
November 23
On 23 November, LCW documented the injury of at least five (5) civilians by bullet fragments in the Ain Zara area of Tripoli, coinciding with live-ammunition military exercises conducted by the 444th Brigade of the Ministry of Defence of the GNU, whose base is located within a residential area.
RECOMMENDATIONS
- Libya Crimes Watch (LCW) calls on the authorities in both eastern and western Libya to take all necessary measures to prevent any military activity in or near residential areas or civilian facilities.
- LCW also urges the Libyan Attorney General to open independent and transparent investigations into incidents of indiscriminate gunfire and falling shells in populated areas and civilian sites, which endanger the lives of civilians, to publish the findings, and to ensure accountability in accordance with international fair-trial standards.
- LCW further calls on the Libyan Attorney General to initiate independent and transparent investigations into all serious human rights violations, including extrajudicial killings, arbitrary detention, enforced disappearance, abduction, and the conditions within both official and unofficial places of detention, and to ensure that those responsible are held to account in line with international fair-trial standards.
- LCW reiterates its call on the authorities in Libya to fulfil their responsibilities to protect the lives of migrants along desert and maritime migration routes, and to cooperate with relevant international organisations to establish effective search-and-rescue mechanisms, collaborate with international rescue organisations, determine the fate of the missing, and ensure proper identification of human remains. LCW also urges the opening of an independent and transparent investigation into incidents of shipwrecks and violations linked to human trafficking, and to hold those involved fully accountable in accordance with international standards of justice.
- LCW appeals to the Office of the Prosecutor (OTP) of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to reconsider its decision to conclude investigations in Libya by the end of 2025, given that such a step risk entrenching impunity amid the continued absence of political will, capacity, and effectiveness within national judicial mechanisms, and their inability to meet their obligations under the complementarity principle of the Rome Statute.
- LCW renews its call on the United Nations Human Rights Council (HRC) and its member states to establish an international investigative mechanism, as a successor to the Independent Fact-Finding Mission, to investigate serious human rights violations in Libya, identify those responsible, and support pathways towards accountability, justice, and combating impunity.
- LCW urges the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) and influential states to intensify pressure on all parties to respect human rights, work meaningfully towards achieving transitional justice, uncover the truth, provide redress for victims, and bring an end to the prevailing state of impunity that fuels ongoing violations.
