On Sunday, Libyan authorities decided to shut off water supplies to various areas in the country after gunmen demanded the release of a jailed Gaddafi-era official and threatened to sabotage the water network.
Supplies to western and southwestern Libya were interrupted overnight Saturday to Sunday, the Great Man-Made River water authority said.
The authority took the decision to cut the supply after gunmen stormed several water distribution centres on Thursday, demanding the release of Abdullah al-Senussi.
Several pages on social media outlets circulated statements attributed to al-Senussi’s daughter. She confirmed that her father is suffering from cancer. She is accusing authorities, who are detaining him, of preventing access to medical care.
In a statement, the National Human Rights Commission in Libya (NHRCL) stressed that preventing prisoners and detainees from exercising their rights, foremost of which is receiving treatment, health care, and conducting medical examinations, constitutes a grave violation of the rule of law and justice.
The NHCRL pointed out that it also constitutes a serious breach of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. The two covenants stipulate that all prisoners shall be treated with the respect due to their inherent dignity and value as human beings and stipulates the need to ensure their access to the health services available in the country without discrimination on the grounds of their legal situation.
A brother-in-law of longtime leader Moammar Gaddafi, al-Senussi was sentenced to death in 2015 over his alleged role in attempting to suppress the 2011 uprising that culminated in Gaddafi’s ouster and killing.