• Human Rights in Libya
    After more than 40 years of dictatorship under Muammar Gaddafi, Libya held elections in July. However, a weak interim government failed to disband an array of armed groups that had emerged around the country. Nor was it able to end arbitrary detention and the torture of detainees, or address the forced displacement of groups perceived to be pro-Gaddafi. Libyans suffer from ongoing violence, including tribal clashes and deadly attacks on foreign diplomatic missions and international organizations. Kidnappings for financial and political reasons persist along with targeted killings of former Gaddafi security officers. Sufi religious sites have been destroyed. Migrants from sub-Saharan Africa face arrests, beatings, and forced labor.
  • Saif al-Islam Gaddafi is seen sitting in a plane in Zintan.
    © 2011 Reuters
    ICC: Libya Should Comply With Court’s Ruling

    Libya should abide by the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) decision on May 31, 2013, and turn over Saif al-Islam Gaddafi to the court.

More news »

Featured Content

    • Libya: Bodies Uncovered Near Gaddafi's Compound
      Aug 27 2011 - 15:07

      You are missing some Flash content that should appear here! Perhaps your browser cannot display it, or maybe it did not initialize correctly.
    World Report 2013: Libya
    Collection of never-before-seen pictures of Gaddafi
Subscribe to content feed

Reports

More >>

Libya

  • ICC: Libya Should Comply With Court’s Ruling
    May 31, 2013

    Libya should abide by the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) decision on May 31, 2013, and turn over Saif al-Islam Gaddafi to the court.

  • Women face challenges as Libya moves toward a new constitution
    May 31, 2013
    “I have waited my whole life for tomorrow, which will be a new day for Libya,” an elated Haja Nowara told Human Rights Watch on the eve of Libya’s first democratic national elections in July 2012. “We sacrificed a lot to get here.”
  • Learning a Lesson from Libya & Iraq: Reconciliation, Not Revenge!
    May 29, 2013
    Even as Syria’s nightmare continues, policy makers should consider the country’s future once hostilities end. Those planning for Syria’s “day after” should learn a lesson from the past and avoid an approach just adopted in Libya, and before that in Iraq, that will widen divisions rather than heal the wounds.
  • Libya: Seize Chance to Protect Women’s Rights
    May 26, 2013
    Libyan authorities should seize a historic opportunity to promote and protect women’s rights as the country transitions from four decades of dictatorship, Human Rights Watch said in a new report released today.
  • ICC: Libya's Bids to Try Gaddafi, Sanussi
    May 13, 2013

    On February 26, 2011, the United Nations Security Council adopted resolution 1970 by a vote of 15-0 referring the situation in Libya to the ICC. Under the Rome Statute, the ICC's founding treaty, the Security Council may refer a situation in any country to the ICC prosecutor under its Chapter VII mandate if it determines that the situation threatens international peace and security.

  • Libya: Reject ‘Political Isolation Law’
    May 4, 2013
    ibya’s General National Congress (GNC) should vote down the latest draft of a new law to bar Gaddafi-era officials from holding public office. The proposed law’s provisions and procedures for exclusion are too sweeping and vague, Human Rights Watch said. Further, a recent amendment to the provisional constitution would prohibit judicial review of the law. A vote is expected in congress on May 5, 2013.
  • Libya: Ensure Abdallah Sanussi Access to Lawyer
    Apr 17, 2013
    Abdallah Sanussi, the long-time intelligence chief for Muammar Gaddafi, told Human Rights Watch in a prison visit on April 15, 2013, that he has not had access to a lawyer or been informed of the formal charges against him during almost eight months in Libyan detention. He did not complain of physical abuse and said his conditions in custody have been “reasonable.”
  • Libya: Release Ailing Newspaper Editor
    Apr 12, 2013
    Libyan authorities should immediately drop criminal defamation charges and free Amara Hassan al-Khatabi, editor of al-Ummah daily. Al-Khatabi, who has been in detention since December 19, 2012, is on trial for “insulting” and “slandering” members of the judiciary. His private lawyer was not allowed to visit him while he was detained in prison and says he was transferred to a medical facility due to his fragile health on April 6, 2013, where he remains detained under guard.
  • Libya: Ensure Due Process for Extradited Libyans
    Mar 30, 2013
    Libya should ensure that two Libyans with ties to the previous government of Muammar Gaddafi who were extradited from Egypt on March 26, 2013, are treated humanely and granted their full due process rights. Libya should grant humanitarian and human rights organizations access to them to monitor their detention conditions and treatment and respect for their basic rights as detainees – including giving them access to a lawyer and promptly taking them before a judge.
  • Why have we forgotten about Libya?
    Mar 25, 2013
    All civilians deserve protection, but some civilians deserve more protection than others. Or so it seems in Libya today.
more documents on this topic »