Enforced disappearance in Libya : Adala for All association calls on the authorities to conduct a prompt and impartial investigation to uncover the party responsible for Mohamed el-Gomati's abduction
Abduction of Mohamed el-Gomati, brother of opposition figure Husam el-Gomati in Libya
A flagrant violation requiring an urgent investigation
Libya, 27 March 2025- Adala for All (AFA) strongly condemns and is deeply concerned over the abduction of engineer Mohamed el-Gomati from his home in Tajoura at dawn on Monday, 24 March 2025. Mohamed’s abduction is believed to be linked to the activities of his brother, Husam el-Gomati, a Libyan opposition figure residing in Sweden. Husam recently revealed documents incriminating the militia’s involvement in corruption and human rights violations in Libya.
Available information indicates that the Attorney General’s Office in Tripoli opened a file on the case, confirming that Mohamed el-Gomati is not being held in any official facility, raising serious concerns that he may be subjected to enforced disappearance by illegal entities.
This abduction constitutes a flagrant violation of numerous international laws and treaties ratified by Libya, including:
- The Constitutional Declaration of 2011, which guarantees the protection of fundamental freedoms and prohibits arbitrary detention
- The International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance, which obligates Libya to prevent these crimes and hold those responsible accountable
- The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which guarantees the right to liberty and security
- Law No. 10 of 2013, which criminalizes torture, enforced disappearance, and unlawful detention
Based on the above, Adala for All association calls on:
· Libyan authorities to reveal Mohamed el-Gomati’s whereabouts and guarantee his physical and psychological safety and immediately hand him over to the Office of the Attorney General.
· Members of the United Nations Human Rights Council to urgently establish an international commission of inquiry to investigate the gross and systematic violations in Libya affecting judges, lawyers, civil society, political activists, and human rights defenders.
CONTEXT :
In September 2024, Amnesty International documented the systematic enforced disappearance and arbitrary detention of Libyan citizens across all Libyan cities, particularly by the Internal Security Agency, targeting opposition figures, human rights defenders, lawyers, and civil society activists.
In its April 2024 report, the UN Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances further received information from reliable sources regarding alleged violations and obstacles in Libya in implementing the Declaration on the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance. The allegations refer to the arbitrary deprivation of liberty and enforced disappearance of migrants, refugees, and asylum-seekers in Libya, including women, children (often unaccompanied), and persons with disabilities. The Working Group has also been informed that migrants in detention facilities are held in inhumane conditions and that civil society organizations attempting to monitor the conditions of detention and assist persons held captive are often hindered. Furthermore, according to information received by the Working Group, there are no instances of investigations into the above-mentioned circumstances and abuses, which are reportedly covered by impunity, and there is not any effective remedy to redress for the harm suffered in the detention centres concerned.
However, since the mandate of the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Libya ended in March 2023, two years ago, there has been no international mechanism to monitor, document, and investigate the gross and systematic human rights violations in the country. Therefore, it is essential to establish a new independent international commission of inquiry to investigate these ongoing violations. Such a mechanism would contribute not only to documenting these crimes but further to identifying those responsible and strengthening efforts to achieve justice and accountability, in accordance with international human rights obligations.
