Unidentified armed men abducted Libyan journalist Ashraf Al-Sharif on Sunday evening outside his home in Tripoli, according to a family member.
The gunmen were reportedly driving two civilian vehicles without license plates and took Al-Sharif to an unknown location. His current status and whereabouts remain unknown.
Al-Sharif, a well-known media figure in Libya, most recently hosted the Ramadan program “Lahum Bel Mersad” on Salam TV, which investigated practices of witchcraft, superstition, and public deception—sensitive issues that often provoke controversy.
His disappearance comes amid an escalating wave of arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances, and intimidation of journalists and civil society figures across Libya. The incident has added to growing fears over the deterioration of press freedom and human rights protections in the country.
On March 22, the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) issued a warning over what it called a “disturbing increase” in unlawful detentions carried out by state-affiliated security agencies and armed groups. The mission said the detentions have “alarmed the UN” and urged Libyan authorities to take immediate action to uphold the rule of law.
Several days later, on March 28, Lawyers for Justice in Libya and the International Commission of Jurists jointly called on the UN Human Rights Council and UNSMIL to establish a new accountability mechanism and a monitoring body to investigate and report on human rights violations in Libya.
The abduction of Al-Sharif has intensified calls for the protection of journalists and media workers, particularly those covering politically or socially sensitive topics. Human rights advocates warn that such disappearances signal an increasingly repressive environment for freedom of expression in Libya.
