Libya Jails 38 Over Mediterranean Smuggling Case

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Facts

  • A court in eastern Libya has sentenced a total of 38 people to prison on human trafficking convictions for their involvement in a human smuggling scheme that led to the deaths of 11 migrants on a boat crossing the Mediterranean Sea.1
  • According to the office of the General Prosecutor for the case, five defendants were sentenced to life in prison, nine were given 15 years, and another 24 will spend one year behind bars. This followed a separate smuggling sentencing of one individual to life in prison and two others to 20 years each in the capital Tripoli on Friday.2
  • Though the prosecutor's office didn't explain when the deaths occurred or delve into further details, what is known is that the victims were being transported as part of a human trafficking ring from Libya to Europe.3
  • Following the NATO-backed toppling of former dictator Muammar Gaddafi, Libya has become a hub for migrant smuggling into Europe. A UN report in March found that some migrants are also forced into sexual slavery.1
  • In 2021, the UN and US also imposed sanctions on Libyan national Osama Al Kuni Ibrahim, who was accused of "horrific abuses against sub-Saharan migrants" in a detention center in Libya.4

Sources: 1FOX 22/ABC 7, 2Al Jazeera, 3Associated Press, and 4Africa News.

Narratives

  • Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by U.S. Department of State. Though Libya has strengthened its justice system to some degree, in recent years the government hasn't been able to keep up with the growing human trafficking enterprise. Labor and sex slavery have been exploited by corrupt government officials, the military, and private companies while migrant detention centers breed further abuse at the official state level. The global community must step up to help prevent these unacceptable human rights abuses.
  • Establishment-critical narrative, as provided by Grayzone. While the Libyan government doesn't deserve a Nobel Peace Prize, Western institutions are not free of blame here either. Instead of intercepting migrants themselves, the EU outsources migrant handling to Tripoli, which means the EU is funding at least some part of this abuse. By not taking control of the situation, European leaders have allowed migrants to be sold off to depraved labor and sex slave rings. The Western "rules-based order" must take an honest look at its role in the treatment of migrants.