At least 130 people have been killed in anti-personnel mines and other explosive devices and ammunition abandoned after the end of fighting in Tripoli in June 2020, according to a report by the non-governmental organization Human Rights Watch. Watch, HRW) released Wednesday.
In April 2019, forces of Brigadier General Khalifa Haftar, the strongman of eastern Libya, launched a raid to seize Tripoli, the capital and seat of the UN-recognized government, before retreating after its failure. 2020.
In the southern suburbs of Tripoli, the main theater of hostilities, the insurgents left behind countless anti-personnel mines, which “mutilated hundreds of civilians, including children, and still prevent residents (…) from returning home.” stressed Hanan Salah, an HRW researcher specializing in Libya.
According to the NGO report, cited by the Libyan Center for Mine Action, a public body under the Ministry of Defense, anti-personnel mines and improvised explosive devices have claimed the lives of 130 people, injured about 200 others and displaced thousands.
The conflict stopped in the summer of 2020 and the ceasefire agreement, signed in October of the same year, continues to be generally respected. But the country remains mired in a political impasse in the still-imperfect political transition since the overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, with two rival governments vying for power.
Landmine and explosive ordnance disposal operations are hampered by “fragmented governance, inadequate coordination between government agencies and humanitarian organizations” and a lack of resources, according to HRW.
The battle of Tripoli was largely fueled by foreign intervention. Thousands of mercenaries of various nationalities took part in the battles.
Turkey’s intervention was crucial for the then Government of National Unity to repel the attack of General Haftar’s forces. The latter had, among other things, under the orders of the mercenaries of the Russian private group Wagner.
HRW, which studied visual footage of anti-mine humanitarian organizations, said Wednesday that it had “identified 10 anti-personnel mines of Soviet and Russian origin”.
“So far, no commander or fighter, Libyan or foreigner, responsible for serious violations during the hostilities in Tripoli in 2019 and 2020, has been held accountable,” said Ms Salah, who called for “international action to to carry out credible prosecutions “.
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