Int’l Criminal Court says Libyan war crimes suspect now in custody

Khaled Mohamed Ali El Hishri allegedly committed serious crimes at Libya’s Mitiga Prison from 2015 to 2020, The Hague-based ICC says.

The International Criminal Court (ICC) says it has taken Khaled Mohamed Ali El Hishri, who is wanted for allegedly committing crimes against humanity and war crimes in Libya between 2015 and 2020, into custody.

El Hishri was “surrendered to the custody” of the court in The Hague, the Netherlands, on Monday, by authorities in Germany, where he was arrested on July 16 this year.

“Mr El Hishri is alleged to have been one of the most senior Mitiga Prison officials, where thousands of persons were detained for prolonged periods,” the ICC said in a statement.

“He is suspected of having committed directly himself, ordered or overseen crimes against humanity and war crimes, including murder, torture, rape and sexual violence, allegedly committed in Libya from February 2015 to early 2020,” the court said.

The ICC has been investigating alleged crimes against humanity and war crimes committed in Libya since March 2011, following a request from the United Nations Security Council (UNSC).

El Hishri’s transfer to the ICC’s custody comes a week after the court’s deputy prosecutor, Nazhat Shameem Khan, briefed the 15-member UNSC in New York on the details of the ongoing case, saying that “there is a new momentum towards justice in Libya”.

“For too long, crimes committed in detention facilities in … Libya have represented a no-go area for accountability,” she told the UNSC. But she added that the court has been facing “unprecedented headwinds”, including intimidation of its officials.

The ICC still has nine other outstanding arrest warrants in relation to the same case, including for former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi’s son, Saif Al-Islam Gaddafi, and Chief of Judicial Police Osama Elmasry Njeem.

Njeem was detained in Italy in January this year, but within a few days, he was reportedly released and transferred back to Libya, where he faced arrest last month, according to media reports.

The ICC released a statement at the time of Njeem’s release from Italian detention, reminding governments that are party to the Rome Statute, which includes Italy, “to cooperate fully with the Court in its investigations and prosecutions of crimes”.

Established in 2002, the ICC is responsible for prosecuting individuals wanted for serious crimes, including war crimes and crimes against humanity.