3 days ago
Libya: UN raises alarm over ‘gross violations' after scores of bodies found at militia sites in Tripoli
The UN has demanded an independent probe into evidence of extrajudicial killings by an armed Libyan group following the discovery of dozens of bodies in mass graves across Libya's capital Tripoli.
The bodies were found at sites run by the Stabilisation Support Apparatus (SSA), one of the city's most powerful militia groups, once led by Abdel-Ghani al-Kikli who was assassinated in May.
Al-Kikli, also known as "Gheniwa," was among Tripoli's most influential militia commanders and faced allegations of extrajudicial killings and serious human rights violations.
Before his death, he had come into conflict with other armed groups.
His killing triggered armed clashes across the capital, the deadliest since August 2023, when rival factions in Tripoli battled for control, leaving 55 people dead.
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In the wake of the violence, the UN human rights office (OCHR) said 10 badly charred bodies were discovered at the SSA headquarters in the Abu Salim neighbourhood, while 67 more bodies were found 'in refrigerators in various states of decay' in hospitals in Abu Salim and Al Khadra.
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Another suspected mass grave has also been reported at the SSA-run Tripoli Zoo. The identities of the victims remain unknown.
Volker Turk, the UN's high commissioner said the revelations confirmed the UN's 'worst-held fears' of gross human rights violations perpetrated by the group at these sites, adding that the bodies were found along with "suspected instruments of torture and abuse, and potential evidence of extrajudicial killings'.
Turk noted that forensic authorities have not been allowed into the sites and called on the Libyan authorities to seal them to preserve evidence and ensure international access.
The recent revelations follow the discovery of two mass graves in Jakharrah and Al-Kufra in February, containing over 100 bodies of refugees, who are particularly vulnerable to human trafficking, forced disappearance and killings in Libya.
The SSA has long been suspected by the UN Support Mission in Libya and independent rights experts of being the main perpetrators of violence inside Libya's detention centres.
Officially tied to the Presidential Council under the internationally recognised Government of National Unity (GNU), the group is one of the many factions competing for power in Libya's capital.
