German authorities have arrested a Libyan man accused of overseeing torture and sexual abuse at a notorious prison in Tripoli, the International Criminal Court said on Friday.
A Libyan man wanted for war crimes and crimes against humanity has been arrested in Germany on a sealed International Criminal Court warrant. The suspect, Khaled Mohamed Ali El Hishri, was allegedly a senior figure at Mitiga prison in Tripoli, where thousands of detainees were subjected to torture and sexual violence.
The ICC confirmed El Hishri’s arrest on Wednesday. He will remain in German custody while legal proceedings are underway to transfer him to The Hague.
Prosecutors accuse El Hishri of committing, ordering, or overseeing crimes including murder, torture, rape and sexual violence between February 2015 and early 2020. He is believed to have been a leading member of the Special Deterrence Force, an armed group active during Libya’s civil war.
According to the ICC, Mitiga was the largest detention facility in western Libya. Detainees were held in overcrowded and unhygienic conditions and subjected to brutal treatment, including systematic torture and rape. Both men and women suffered abuse during their time in custody.
The ICC prosecution office called the arrest a significant step in efforts to secure accountability for crimes committed in Libyan detention centers. It said it was prepared to begin trial proceedings and expressed gratitude to witnesses and victims who had come forward during the investigation.
“This development is so needed at a time of unprecedented turmoil in the field of accountability generally and at the ICC specifically,” said Kip Hale, a former UN investigator who documented war crimes in Libya.
El Hishri would be the first Libyan suspect to stand trial at the ICC. The court praised German authorities for executing the arrest warrant and supporting international justice efforts.
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