A Libyan court has postponed proceedings in the long-running Abu Salim Prison massacre case, with the next hearing scheduled for 19 July, according to representatives of victims’ families.
Mustafa Al-Majdoub, legal adviser to the Association of Abu Salim Massacre Victims, said the Second Criminal Chamber of the Tripoli Court of Appeal adjourned the case during its seventeenth session.
Speaking to Libya Al-Ahrar, Al-Majdoub said the hearing saw the participation of several prominent defendants linked to the case. Former intelligence chief Abdullah Al-Senussi, identified as the second defendant, and Mansour Dhao, the third defendant, attended via video conference. Other defendants, including Wajdi Al-Thabet and Abdulqader Al-Werfalli, were present in the courtroom. A number of victims’ relatives also attended the session.
According to Al-Majdoub, defence lawyers representing the accused presented their arguments before the court and were granted sufficient time to complete their submissions.
The hearing also included arguments from the Public Prosecution, which addressed compensation payments previously offered to some victims’ families during the former regime. Prosecutors argued that those payments did not constitute a legal reconciliation and did not meet the requirements of Islamic blood-money compensation.
The prosecution further stated that hundreds of victims’ families rejected the compensation arrangements and have not accepted or received the financial payments offered to them.
The Abu Salim Prison case remains one of Libya’s most significant judicial files linked to alleged human rights violations during the rule of former leader Muammar Gaddafi. The massacre, which occurred at Abu Salim Prison in Tripoli in 1996, is believed to have resulted in the deaths of hundreds of inmates, although the exact number remains disputed.
The ongoing trial is closely watched by victims’ families and human rights groups, who view the proceedings as a key test of Libya’s ability to address legacy cases and deliver accountability for past abuses through the judicial system.
The court is expected to resume hearings on 19 July as legal proceedings continue.
