On Monday, Deputy Head of the Libyan Presidential Council, Abdullah Al-Lafi met with the Head of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) delegation in Libya, Jean-Nicolas Marti.
Marti gave a briefing about the committee’s work on a number of files, especially detainees, missing persons, unidentified bodies, and relief for the displaced, This is in coordination with relevant local and international bodies, and the results it achieved in this aspect.
Al-Lafi praised the efforts made by the committee, and stressed the importance of its work, especially to the success of the national reconciliation project launched by the Presidential Council. He also praised the identification of detainees, missing persons, and unidentified bodies, across Libya, including in the Tarhuna mass graves.
The meeting was attended by the Coordinator of the Protection Department of the Committee, Lina Milner, and the Chairman of the Standing Committee for Humanitarian Affairs of the Libyan Army, and the Director of the Human Rights Office at the Ministry of Defense , Hatem Al-Akady.
Last month, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), reported that 168,000 people remain displaced in Libya.
“To ensure the voluntary, safe, and sustainable return of displaced communities, there is a need for a durable solutions strategy encompassing physical, material, and legal safety for both Internally Displaced Persons (IDP’s) and returnees,” OCHA Libya tweeted.
It explained that according to the International Organisation for Migration’s (IOM), latest Displacement Tracking Matrix (DTM – Round 39), more displaced people are returning to their places of origin due to the improved security situation.
It added that following the returnee trend, the number of IDP’s remaining in Libya continued to decline during this round. The total estimated number has decreased from 199,949 in September 2021 to 179,047 by end of November, accounting for a reduction of nearly 21,000 individuals.
The top three regions hosting IDP communities are Benghazi, Misrata, and Tripoli. Approximately 79% of the IDP’s live in self-paid rented accommodation. A majority in the Benghazi region face protracted displacement, “as they have been displaced since 2017 or earlier, from areas previously damaged by armed conflict within the municipality,” OCHA noted.
“In the southern region, the number of IDP’s hosted in Murzuq decreased by more than 50% from the previous round of reporting from 12,150 to 6,255 individuals,” it said.
“Although the number of returns has maintained a steady pace since October 2020, the trend is expected to slow as those still displaced face more systemic impediments to return, including personal security and social cohesion. According to the IOM, as of end of November 2021, some 661,892 individuals, representing 132,412 families, have returned, of which 98% returned to their places of origin, and up to 90% live in their previous homes,” the statement said.