Geneva: The United Nations has demanded an independent and transparent investigation into the discovery of mass graves in detention centres located in Libya’s capital, Tripoli.
In a strongly worded statement released on Wednesday, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) expressed deep alarm over severe human rights abuses at both official and unofficial detention sites overseen by the Stability Support Apparatus — a security body affiliated with Libya's Presidential Council.
The Apparatus was originally formed to reinforce the rule of law and operates under the Government of National Unity, led by Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah, which was installed in 2021 through a U.N.-brokered political process.
Despite its oil wealth, Libya has struggled with instability and lawlessness since the 2011 NATO-backed revolt that ended Muammar Gaddafi’s rule, leaving the country fractured between rival eastern and western factions.
The OHCHR said the recent discovery of numerous bodies and possible torture instruments aligns with earlier UN reports documenting abuses in such facilities. “We are shocked by the scale and severity of the violations,” the statement read. “We urge Libyan authorities to ensure independent, impartial, and transparent investigations.”
The agency called for preservation of forensic evidence and unrestricted access for UN and Libyan forensic teams to the grave sites.
Although open warfare has subsided since a 2020 ceasefire, Libya’s fragile peace continues to be undermined by ongoing political deadlock and sporadic outbreaks of violence between armed groups. On Monday, heavy gunfire rattled central Tripoli following reports that a senior commander of one of the capital’s dominant militias had been killed.
