Rival armed groups and quasi-state forces in Libya failed to protect civilians during clashes in Tripoli last week, leading to civilian deaths and damage to homes, Human Rights Watch said today. Judicial authorities should urgently investigate allegations of abuses and violations.
Heavy fighting broke out between armed groups in the Libyan capital on May 12 following the killing of Abdelghani "Ghneiwa" al-Kikli, commander of the Tripoli-based armed group Stability Support Apparatus (SSA) in circumstances that remain unclear. After two days of clashes, a truce came into force on May 14. Armed groups have since used live ammunition to quell widespread anti-government protests.
"Civilians caught in the Tripoli fighting are once again bearing the brunt of reckless, unaccountable armed groups who show utter disregard for the lives of people when they fire heavy weapons in residential areas," said Hanan Salah, associate Middle East and North Africa director at Human Rights Watch. "All armed groups are required to protect civilians from harm during clashes and the authorities need to ensure their right to peaceful protest."
While this round of fighting was triggered by turf wars and escalating tensions around control of resources, the clashes occurred within a wider political divide in the country as two rival authorities vie for control of Libya: the Tripoli-based Government Of National Unity (GNU), affiliated armed groups, and quasi-state forces control western Libya, and their rivals, the Libyan Arab Armed Forces (LAAF) and affiliated security apparatuses and militias, control eastern and southern Libya.
Al-Kikli was reportedly killed alongside several companions at a Tripoli meeting with other prominent commanders from western Libya. The meeting took place at Tekbali base, headquarters of the powerful GNU-aligned 444 Combat Brigade. The circumstances of al-Kikli's death are currently unclear, but an autopsy report circulating on social media suggests he was shot at point blank range at the back of the head.
Following the killing, fighting broke out between rival armed groups. The 444 Combat Brigade, headed by Mahmoud Hamza who is also the GNU head of military intelligence, clashed with SSA positions. Another major armed group, the Deterrence Anti-Organized Crime and Terrorism Apparatus, also known as al-Radaa and led by Abderrauf Kara, joined in the fighting after the 444 Brigade attacked areas under its control.
A 21-year old bride-to-be was reportedly killed in the clashes on May 14 when a shell fell on her house in the Ain Zara area. Emergency services that day retrieved the bodies of two brothers, Salem and Nagib al-Tajouri, after a shell apparently fired indiscriminately landed on their home and killed them. Souad al-Soueih, a civilian resident of Souq al-Jomaa, was also killed after a shell hit her home according to media reports quoting the local municipality. In another incident reported by local media, shelling on May 12 in Suleiman Khater Street injured several passersby.
As of May 20, the GNU Health Ministry had not released casualty figures from the fighting. The eastern-based House of Representatives said that six civilians were killed, but did not provide a source.
Tripoli residents shared videos and photos of damage to civilian objects, including burning houses and cars. The GNU Interior Ministry said it processed at least 69 claims of damage to civilian property, as of May 18. Offices and vehicles belonging to the Central Bank of Libya were also damaged by the fighting.
The Tripoli Ambulance and Emergency Department called on armed factions to provide safe passage for civilians who wished to flee the fighting and for emergency workers.
International law obligates warring factions to take all feasible precautions to minimize harm to civilians and civilian objects. Deliberate attacks on civilians and civilian objects are prohibited. Parties should facilitate rapid and unimpeded passage of humanitarian relief, respect medical personnel vehicles, and facilitate the safe movement of civilians in particular to enable them to escape a zone of fighting.
Armed groups in Tripoli also reportedly used live ammunition to disperse demonstrators who came out to protest the GNU in the Abu Salim neighborhood and in Martyr Square on May 14 and the days that followed. On May 16, the GNU interior ministry announced the death of a police officer "due to random gunfire while performing his security duties" in al-Ghazala Square, but did not provide details.
Reports circulated on social media of the release or escape of prisoners from detention facilities previously run by the SSA, but these reports are unconfirmed. Authorities should ensure detainees are accounted for and that prompt judicial reviews are conducted to establish their status and the need for their continued detention, Human Rights Watch said.
In a May 12 statement, GNU Prime Minister Abdelhamdi Dabeiba sought to portray the Abu Salim operation as a security achievement, lauding the interior and defense ministries for "their significant accomplishments in establishing security and imposing state authority in the capital," and saying that the objective was to "eliminate irregular groups." In a televised speech on May 17, he justified the attacks on the SSA by GNU-aligned armed groups, saying "Ghneiwa was in a densely populated area, controlled six banks in the country, and anyone who disobeyed him would be sent to prison or the cemetery…. What happened in the Abu Salim area that night was a successful operation carried out quickly and without any damage, despite the area being densely populated." He did not address the reports of civilian casualties and damage to civilian objects.
On May 13, Prime Minister Dabeiba issued a flurry of security decrees in the midst of the clashes, ordering the dissolution or restructuring of security establishments ostensibly to bring them under state control. These included dissolving the Judicial Police Department of Operations and Judicial Security, headed by Osama Elmasry Njeem who is wanted by the International Criminal Court for serious crimes, as well as the Directorate to Counter Illegal Migration, transferring the latter's assets to a new General Administration for Combating Illegal Immigration under the GNU Interior Ministry. He also appointed Mustafa al-Wahishi to head the notoriously abusive Tripoli Internal Security Agency.
Widespread backlash to the decrees among targeted armed factions led Mohamed al-Menfi, head of the Presidential Council, to freeze the decisions that are "of a military or security nature" on May 13. Several Ministers resigned in protest over the GNU's handling of clashes, including the deputy prime minister and the ministers of economy and trade, local government, and housing and construction.
Authorities should disclose the status of fighters and militia members detained during or in the aftermath of the clashes and ensure they are detained according to law, treated humanely, and not subject to revenge crimes. Judicial authorities should secure documents and other evidence found in prisons or bases used by the SSA and other armed groups in Abu Salim neighborhood to ensure that critical evidence for future accountability is preserved.
"Judicial authorities should urgently investigate reports of abuses," Salah said. "Commanders could be held criminally responsible for crimes committed by subordinates unless they act resolutely to stop them and punish those responsible."
