Arab and international condemnations against GNA militias in Tarhuna

Amira al-Sharif

A number of countries and regional, international, and Arab organizations have condemned the Libya’s Government of National Accord (GNA) militias and the Turkish mercenaries for committing serious abuses and torture of civilians in Tarhuna, Bani Walid, Al-Asabea and Sabratha.

GNA militants posted video and audio clips on social media documenting their brutal passage to a number of Libyan cities, including field executions, arrests, torture, breaking into homes and looting and burning their contents, looting public and private property, and sabotaging installations.

According to jurists, hundreds of crimes amounting to genocide have been committed in Tarhuna, Bani Walid, Al-Asabea, and Qasr bin Ghashir.

More than 4,000 members of the Al-Nusra Front and pro-Turkish extremists entered Tarhuna, causing the displacement of thousands of civilians, while those who remained in the city were killed.

Media reports have stated that the violations in Tarhuna and south of Tripoli not only targeted civilians and their property, but also caused the displacement of 16,000 people, according to United Nations estimates.

In this context, Libyan Justice Minister Mohamed Lamloum announced that massacres had been committed against families in the city of Tarhuna, amounting to “genocide”, adding that certain families such as Al-Taji and Herodah were particularly targeted. He expressed shock at “the scale of violations and the number of dead.”

Lamloum pointed out that the Ministry of Justice “has formed a committee headed by a forensic doctor specialized in mass graves, and it works under the supervision of the Attorney General’s Office to preserve evidence.”

For its part, the United Nations Mission to Libya called on the GNA to open an investigation into the looting and destruction of property in Tarhuna and Al-Asabea, while the German ambassador to Libya expressed his shock at the reports received about terrible human rights violations in Tarhuna after the militias loyal to Fayez al-Sarraj’s GNA entered the region.

For its part, the Arab League announced that it was following with great dismay the reports of the discovery of a number of mass graves in recent days.

The Arab League called for an integrated investigation in this regard in accordance with international law. It also warned against the illegal methods of detaining, insulting, and torturing civilians, whether Libyans or non-Libyans.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg expressed his concern over the situation in Libya, which he described as extremely difficult and dangerous, stressing the need to reach a political solution to the crisis under the umbrella of the United Nations.

“We support the United Nations’ call for an investigation into all violations in Libya. A peaceful political solution to the Libyan crisis must be found,” he said.

“NATO supports the efforts led by the United Nations, as well as the initiative and outputs of the Berlin Summit,” he added.

France, meanwhile, has called for talks with NATO countries about Turkey’s aggressive role in Libya, as relations have become tense with Ankara because of its policies regarding several files, most recently the Libyan file.

The Libyan National Army (LNA) liberated areas controlled by the GNA militias, and then it liberated the cities of Tarhuna and Bani Walid east of the capital, in addition to all cities on the West Coast, the Al-Watiya air base, and towns in the western mountains.

For years, Libya has been suffering from an armed conflict over legitimacy and authority in the oil-rich country, which has left many civilians dead or injured and caused extensive material damage.