International pressure on the outgoing Government of National Unity (GNU), led by Abdelhamid Dbaiba, has sharply escalated following a series of reports detailing grave abuses inside Libya’s migrant detention system.
Allegations of mass graves, torture, and systematic violations have prompted renewed criticism during the UN Human Rights Council’s Universal Periodic Review in Geneva, where several states called for the immediate closure of detention centers and for independent investigations into abuses.
A coordinated group of European and African countries used the session to denounce Libya’s treatment of migrants. The United Kingdom, Spain, Norway, and Sierra Leone stated that the GNU has failed to uphold basic human rights obligations, accusing authorities of allowing detention facilities to operate as sites of severe mistreatment.
The UK delegation expressed particular alarm over reports of mass graves containing bodies marked by gunshot wounds, calling for full international access to all suspected burial sites. Norway demanded an immediate end to arbitrary arrests targeting migrants and insisted on stronger protection measures.
Responding to the criticism, Acting Foreign Minister Mohammed Al-Baaour portrayed Libya as a country overwhelmed by large migration flows, arguing that the burden poses economic and security challenges.
His statement did not address the central allegations or commit to structural reforms, reinforcing concerns that the GNU lacks effective authority over militia-run detention sites.
In a separate development, thirteen international humanitarian organizations announced the suspension of all operational cooperation with the Libyan Coast Guard. They cited rising levels of violence during migrant interceptions and the routine transfer of survivors into detention centers where they face systemic abuse.
The decision places additional scrutiny on the Coast Guard, an entity funded and trained by several European governments as part of migration-control strategies.
Human rights groups further warned that the core of the crisis lies in the unchecked power of armed groups across Libya. Their influence, they argued, undermines accountability, disrupts judicial processes, and renders any meaningful reform of the detention system nearly impossible.
Despite the bleak conditions, a limited humanitarian operation took place in Tripoli, where 91 Syrians departed on a UNHCR-organized voluntary return flight. Activists cautioned that such efforts may face bureaucratic or security obstacles from the GNU’s Interior Ministry.
