The Secretary-General of the Arab Organisation for Human Rights (AOHR) in Libya, Abdel-Moneim Al-Horr, said that the humanitarian situation of migrants held in detention centres was extremely dangerous and complicated.
He noted that the Government of National Accord (GNA) disclosed it has 23 official detention centres, where the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCR) and International Organisation for Migration (IOM) operate. However, there are reportedly many other shelters, and detention centres in western Libya that international organisations know nothing about.
Al-Horr explained that migrants are subjected to all kinds of violations, including murder, rape, forced labour, and forced participation in military actions.
He linked the return of militia control over seaports in mid-April to the increase in migration waves to Europe. This is especially true for the cities of Sabratha, Surman, Zawiya, and Zuwara. The AOHR Secretary General also accused Italy and Malta of international violations, mainly in the form of refoulement by re-deporting migrants to Libya.
Al-Horr added that human traffickers such as “Al Baida”, “Al-Amu” and “Al-Hussan”, whose names are on the international sanctions list of the Security Council, still enjoy legitimacy within the Libyan Coast Guard.
Recently, a Nigerian migrant worker was murdered in the Tajoura district of Tripoli. He was reportedly burned alive by three militiamen.
The latest report by the UNHCR indicates that at least 70 migrants died in 2020. This includes at least 30 people who were killed by human traffickers in Mizda, southwest of Tripoli, in late May. The report added that about 1,750 refugees and migrants, including women and children, have died in 2018 and 2019.