Libya’s House of Representatives has begun reviewing the situation of Libyan citizens imprisoned abroad, as a parliamentary committee held its first meeting of 2026 to assess legal and humanitarian files and strengthen coordination with government bodies.
The committee, formed under Speaker Aqeela Saleh’s Decision No. 62 of 2025, met on Tuesday, January 13, at the headquarters of the House of Representatives. The body is tasked with monitoring and documenting the cases of Libyans detained outside the country.
The meeting brought together MPs Al-Saleheen Abdelnabi, Ahmed Al-Sharef, and Al-Sayeda Al-Yaqubi, alongside the committee’s legal adviser Ashraf Al-Dous, and Ibrahim Boushnaf, head of the government-appointed committee for monitoring detainees and prisoners inside Libya under Decision No. 487 of 2025.
Discussions focused on mechanisms for joint action between the two committees, ways to unify efforts, and coordination to address related legal and humanitarian cases in a comprehensive and effective manner.
Participants reviewed the conditions of Libyan prisoners abroad, examining legal procedures, human rights concerns, and follow-up mechanisms to ensure protection of detainees’ rights and improvement of their conditions. The meeting also addressed the state of prisons inside Libya, challenges facing correctional and rehabilitation institutions, and the enforcement of court rulings, in coordination with the Deputy Commander-in-Chief, in support of the rule of law and institutional reform.
Updated statistics presented during the session showed that 298 cases of Libyans detained abroad are currently under follow-up. Of these, 113 citizens have been released, verdicts have been issued in 128 cases, and two cases involved withdrawal or deportation. The committee also noted that court rulings have ordered the release of 47 prisoners and the deportation of 18 others, while a number of files remain under legal review.
The committee stressed the importance of strengthening communication with Libyan embassies abroad and of regularly briefing both the Attorney General and the Speaker of the House of Representatives on developments, to accelerate legal procedures and safeguard the rights of Libyan citizens overseas.
The meeting concluded with agreement to submit a proposal to establish a specialized national authority to oversee prisoners’ affairs, aiming to unify institutional efforts and enhance legal and humanitarian supervision of detainees both inside and outside Libya.
