UN calls for probe into Libya prison torture videos

The UN mission in Libya has called for an urgent investigation into reports of abuse and torture of inmates, following online footage said to be from a prison in the country’s east.

The United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) said in a statement late Tuesday that it was “alarmed by the disturbing footage circulating on social media, which shows brutal torture and ill-treatment of detainees at the Gernada detention facility in eastern Libya”.

Footage of detainees being violently mistreated and beaten by men in uniforms in what appeared to be a detention centre spread on social media in recent days.

While the videos remained unverified, the UN mission said the footage appeared “consistent with documented patterns of human rights violations in detention facilities across Libya.”

The videos showed “both Libyan and foreign nationals”, and alleged acts of torture “constitute serious violations of international human rights law”, UNSMIL said.

The North African country, struggling to recover from years of conflict since the 2011 NATO-backed uprising that toppled Muammer Qadhafi, remains divided between the two rival administrations.

UNSMIL urged authorities to launch “an immediate and transparent investigation” into the alleged abuse of inmates.

The UN mission also said it was “coordinating” with the eastern authorities to ensure “unrestricted access” to the Gernada facility and “other detention centres under their control”.

International human rights groups have long condemned abuses in Libyan detention centres, citing widespread violent practices and torture.

Neither Tripoli nor the eastern-based authorities have commented on these allegations or on the latest footage.

On the other hand, the Libyan state agency mandated to oversee government performance has called for suspension of public sector appointments and contracts due to an excessive wage bill.

The Administrative Control Authority (ACA) said the number of public sector employees in Libya had reached 2,099,200, with salary costs totalling 372 billion Libyan dinars over the past 12 years.

Agencies