On Monday, forces operating under the Government of National Accord (GNA) stormed the Western Coastal towns of Surman and Sobrata, taking full control from the Libyan National Army (LNA).
The offensive featured the return of a series of prominent Libyan criminals and Islamists that tend to operate in secrecy.
One of the characters was the infamous human trafficker, Abdulrahman Al Milad (commonly known as “Al Bija”).
Al Bija is the head of the Zawiya Coast Gaurd and commands one of Zawiya’s most notorious militias, known for its role in human trafficking routes.
Al Bija was sanctioned by the UN Security Council for crimes against humanity that include human trafficking, mistreatment and torture of migrant prisoners, and the systematic sinking of migrant boats resulting in the loss of dozens of lives.
Al Bija has also amassed a very public profile for himself in recent years thanks to a series of international scandals, including public spats with government officials and appearances on international news outlets.
In 2019, an independent investigation found that Italy had invited Al Bija to hold talks with intelligence officials in Sicily back in 2017, despite being fully aware of his involvement in human trafficking.
The incident revealed the Libyan Coastguard’s shallow veneer of legitimacy, exposing a network of corruption whereby the same people responsible for search and rescue were the traffickers themselves.
As such, Italy’s funding of the coastguard was portrayed to be money and equipment going to smugglers.
The incident resulted in pressure on the GNA to arrest Al Bija. Interior Minister Fathi Bashagha took initiative by issuing an arrest warrant stating he would bring the trafficker to justice.
This led Al Bija to respond publicly to the Interior Minister, stating he was an officer of the Libyan Coastguard and the Libyan Navy. According to Al Bija, the Interior Minister had no authority over him and he threatened to retaliate against any attempt to arrest him.
Since that public confrontation, Al Bija has been absent from public view —only to resurface amidst the GNA’s offensive to capture the Western Coastal towns on this week.
Sources informed Libya Review that Al Bija played a role in the recent prison break that took place on Monday, releasing affiliates of his that had been arrested in recent months for human and fuel trafficking.
Al Bija’s public appearance, along with that of former Shura Council leaders and other known criminals during Monday’s developments resurfaced fears of gangs and extremists groups being among the GNA’s coalition and whether the government is capable of dealing with them.