The international medical organisation Doctors Without Borders (MSF) has announced that it received an official request from Libya’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs to leave the country by 9 November, marking a major setback for humanitarian medical work in the North African nation.
The move follows a series of restrictions imposed earlier this year. On 27 March 2025, Libya’s Internal Security Agency ordered MSF to suspend its activities and shut down its offices, while several of its staff members were interrogated. The crackdown also targeted nine other humanitarian organisations operating in western Libya.
Since then, MSF has repeatedly expressed its desire to resume medical operations in Libya and continued to engage with authorities to restore cooperation. However, the latest expulsion order has raised alarm over the fate of vulnerable communities relying on its services.
“We deeply regret this decision,” said Steve Purbrick, MSF’s Head of Programmes in Libya. “We are concerned about the impact on the health of the people we assist. MSF continues to play a vital role in Libya — particularly in diagnosing and treating tuberculosis, supporting the health system, and providing healthcare access to refugees and migrants facing arbitrary detention and violence.”
MSF warned that amid growing restrictions on NGOs, cuts to humanitarian funding, and tightened European border policies coordinated with Libyan authorities, there are now no international organisations providing medical care to refugees and migrants in western Libya.
Purbrick added that MSF’s registration with Libyan authorities remains valid and that the organisation hopes to “find a positive solution” to the current impasse.
In 2024, MSF conducted over 15,000 medical consultations, including 3,000 mental health and 2,000 tuberculosis treatments, in partnership with Libya’s Health Ministry. The organisation also assisted in evacuating vulnerable foreign patients through humanitarian corridors to Italy, while in 2023, it delivered emergency medical aid following the Derna floods.
