Forty-two Libyan human rights organizations demand an investigation

Forty-two Libyan human rights organizations, including Human Rights Solidarity, called on the Office of the General Attorney of Libya to open an urgent and transparent investigation into the mass killing of migrants in Mizdah, to identify and prosecute the perpetrators. In the statement released today, Monday 31 May 2020, the organizations also called on the European Union countries to stop returning migrants to Libya and to stop supporting Libyan security agencies suspected of complicity with human smugglers or suspected of being involved in gross violations of human rights.

The organizations described the incident, in which an armed group attacked a migrant detention center run by a human trafficking gang in the city of Mizdah, on Wednesday, as a horrific new incident, in a series of incidents of grave violations against migrants and expatriates in Libya. The attack killed 30 immigrants, most of them from Bangladesh, and injured 11 others. The gang of smugglers and human traffickers spirited the survivors, who were estimated to be around 200, to another unknown location.

The organizations also described the proliferation of detention facilities run by the human trafficking gangs, called “warehouses for migrants”, in which migrants are detained and exploited openly in a number of Libyan cities in the east and west of the country, as clear evidence of the extent to which local authorities tolerate these crimes committed Publicly and the lack of efforts to hold those responsible accountable.

The organizations called on the Ministry of Interior to draw a plan and provide human and material resources, in coordination with municipal councils and local authorities, to close down these locations run by human traffickers.

Human Rights Solidarity

Tripoli – Libya

Copy of the joint statement is attached

Joint statement by Libyan Human Rights Organizations

On the mass murder of a group of migrants and asylum seekers in Mizdah

In a horrific new incident of the grave violations against migrants and expatriates in Libya, which have increased since the collapse of the political process to rebuild the institutions of the Libyan state in the spring of 2014 and the outbreak of armed conflicts, 30 migrants lost their lives when an armed group attacked a location run by a human smuggler in the town of Mizdah, Southwest of Tripoli. The crime took place on the evening of Wednesday, May 27, and, according to a statement issued by the Ministry of Interior, 26 people from Bangladesh and 4 others of unspecified African nationalities were killed. According to a statement by the International Organization for Migration (IOM), 11 migrants were injured, and some of them have been transferred to Tripoli for medical treatment.

According to available information, the perpetrators surrounded a detention site for migrants, run by human traffickers from the town of Mizdah, and fired intensively at the place where approximately 200 migrants of different nationalities were present. The attack came against the background of the killing of a well-known smuggler from the city of Mizdah, called “Youssef Mohamed”, by a group of migrants detained at the place. According to a reliable source in the city, the “smuggler” Yusef Mohamed “assaulted one of the migrants until he died, and then the brother of the deceased migrants with and a number of migrants assaulted and killed Yusuf. Then an armed group, including the relatives of the dead smuggler, attacked the place”. According to the information received, smugglers and human traffickers transferred the remaining migrants to another unknown location.

According to medical staff of the IOM, the migrant victims have been subjected to torture, they asserted that “the bodies of some migrants showed signs of old beating and physical abuse”, which means that migrants have been subjected to torture and other cruel treatment for a long time. According to testimonies by many migrants, torture of migrants at detention locations run by human traffickers is common, as smugglers torture a migrant to force his family or relatives to pay a ransom in exchange for his release or smuggling.

It is worth noting that the mass violations against migrants, asylum seekers and workers occurred in the past more than once and were reported by Libyan authorities. For example, in March 2017, the Security Directorate of Sabratha reported on the discovery of the 11 migrants murdered and buried in a mass grave in al-Taleel forest, by beach west of the city of Sabratha. The Libyan authorities promised at that time to open an investigation into the crime, but three years have passed with no information on the outcome of the investigations, thus entrenching a culture of impunity.

The proliferation of detention locations run by human trafficking gangs, which are called “migrant warehouses“, in which migrants are detained and exploited overtly in many locations throughout the country, is clear evidence of the extent to which the local authorities are tolerating these crimes committed in public and not keen to punish those responsible. The most notable of these locations is the town of Musaid on the Libyan-Egyptian border which is home of dozens of “migrant warehouses”, Bani Walid, which has become a major point for detaining and exploiting migrants, and others like Tajoura, Qarhabouli (Castelverde), az-Zawia, Surman, Sabratha, and Zuwara.

In the same context, the undersigned organizations stress on the necessity to shut these locations “warehouses” engaging in exploitation and trafficking of migrants in many Libyan cities. It is no longer acceptable to tolerate the crimes of these criminal gangs specializing in smuggling and trafficking, which are taking advantage of the difficult situation of the country; of armed conflicts caused by political and institutional divisions, which has claimed the lives of hundreds of Libyans, not to mention the vulnerable migrants and asylum seekers..

While condemning and denouncing this heinous crime, the undersigned human rights organizations call on:

• The Office of the General Attorney of Libya to open a prompt and transparent investigation into the mass killing of migrants in Mizdah, to identify those responsible for the crime and to hold them accountable,
• The Ministry of Interior to draw up a plan and provide human and material resources, in coordination with municipal councils and local authorities, to close the locations run by human trafficking gangs,
• State organs and institutions to implement international standards of International Human Rights Law and International Humanitarian Law and abide by international agreements ratified by the Libyan state,
• The Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court to investigates and issue arrest warrants for those involved in extrajudicial mass killings of Libyans, migrants and expats,
• The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to issue a public statement urging the Libyan authorities to expedite the investigation of the mass killings in Mizdah,
• Member States of the Human Rights Council to adopt a resolution to establish an International Commission of Inquiry into grave human rights violations in Libya, and
• European Union institutions and member states to cease returning migrants to Libya and stop supporting security institutions suspected of complicity with human smugglers or suspected of being involved in gross human rights violations.

Issued on May 31, 2020

The signatory organizations

1. Tavsout Association
2. Defenders Network
3. Jurists without Restrictions
4. Pioneers Organization for Development
5. The National Assembly Fezzan
6. Youth and Bestowal Association
7. Tebyan for Human Rights
8. With Her Organization for Women’s Rights
9. Defender Center for Human Rights
10. Jeel and Namaa Youth Organization
11. Erban Organization for Civic Orientation
12. Al-Bareeq Organization for Children’s Rights
13. The Libyan Center for Freedom of the Press
14. Theltam Fersata Association, Kabaw
15. Tebayanu Association for Human Rights
16. Al-Naseer Organization for Human Rights
17. Free Press Organization, Sabratha
18. Libyan Women’s Union in the south
19. Youth Gathering for Tawergha
20. Belaady Foundation for Human Rights
21. Al Safwa Charitable Organization
22. The Libyan Center for Rights and Freedoms
23. Human Rights Solidarity Organization
24. Smile Charitable Organization
25. Libyan Future Media Organization
26. The Consultative Center for Human Rights
27. Communication Organization for Social Culture
28. The Independent Human Rights Organization
29. Women Wisdom Association for Women and Culture
30. Candles Organization for People with Disabilities
31. The Arab International Organization for the Rights of Women
32. Migrant Voice for Human Rights
33. 17 February Organization for the Environment and Human Rights
34. Aman Organization Against Discrimination
35. Al-Salam Charitable Society, Bani Walid
36. Tuareg Youth Organization for Dialogue and Debate
37. Al-Shiraa Organization for AIDS and Drug Control
38. Mediterranean Organization for Migration, Development and Relief
39. Mountain Springs Society for Charity and Development
40. Goodness Hands Foundation for Humanitarian Relief
41. The Blue Eye Society for People with Special Needs
42. Migrant Organization for Irregular Migration and Displaced Affairs