ICC Calls for Action To Arrest 6 Linked to Libyan Mass Graves
The International Criminal Court (ICC) on Tuesday urged Libya and other nations to assist in the arrest of six men allegedly linked to the Al Kaniyat militia, which is accused of mass killings and other crimes in Tarhuna, a town where mass graves were discovered in 2020.
Speaking before the UN Security Council, ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan emphasized his willingness to collaborate with Libya, ICC member states, and non-members to secure the arrests. The ICC, which lacks its own enforcement mechanisms, relies on cooperation from its 124 member nations.
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The six suspects include three senior Al Kaniyat leaders, and three Libyan security officials tied to the militia during its control of Tarhuna from 2015 to June 2020. Located southeast of Tripoli, Tarhuna became a focal point of atrocities following the militia’s withdrawal during the collapse of Tobruk-backed senior commander Khalifa Haftar’s military campaign to seize the capital, which is held by a rival government.
“Every household in Tarhuna has a victim,” Prosecutor Khan said, recounting conversations with survivors. “Justice and accountability are essential not just for the victims, but for Libya as a whole.”
“We know where they are,” Khan said Tuesday, noting that the ICC arrest warrants had been unsealed in October. “The victims are asking for trials where they can present their evidence.”
Libya descended into chaos after Muammar Qaddafi’s 2011 NATO-backed ouster is divided into competing administrations in the east and west, each backed by competing militias, armed jihadist groups and foreign powers. Tarhuna’s graves underscore ongoing struggles for justice within Libya’s deeply fractured political landscape.
