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(Beirut) – A Libya A political analyst who had been arbitrarily detained for nearly seven months in eastern Libya died under suspicious circumstances on April 19, 2024, Human Rights Watch said today. Libyan authorities should immediately and impartially investigate the death of Siraj Dughman, a political analyst at the General Directorate of Internal Security in Benghazi.
On October 1, 2023, the Internal Security Service based in Benghazi arrested Duqman, university professor and former member of the 2011 National Transitional Council Fathi Baja and politician Tarek Bishari, accusing them of planning “Overthrow the militaryIn October, the agency also arrested and detained a journalist and former diplomat. Nasser Eldashiand political activist Salem al-Oreibi connect The individuals involved are guilty of the same crime as the Libyan authorities, who have not yet charged any of them with any cognizable crime.
“The poor record of poor detention conditions and lack of due process by eastern Libyan authorities raises serious questions about the circumstances of Duqman’s death,” he said. Hanan was wrong.Deputy Director of the Middle East and North Africa Division at Human Rights Watch. “Eastern Libyan authorities and the attorney general in Tripoli should immediately investigate Duqman’s death.”
in a Video Statement The Benghazi Internal Security Bureau report released on April 20 said Dugman died on April 19 after “he tried to escape through a bathroom window by climbing up an outside pipe and ended up falling headfirst from a height.”
Siraj Dughman’s brother Hamid Dughman first passed Facebook Post April 19. Duqman’s grandfather, Saleh Ghazal, told Human Rights Watch that he had been allowed to visit his grandson four times since he was detained and that he had been treated humanely, and that he had visited four other detainees twice. He said that Duqman’s family received his body the day he died at Jarrah Hospital in Benghazi and buried him the next morning. He said that Siraj’s body was affected by the incident and that, out of consideration for the family’s feelings, they displayed only a portion of it during an overnight vigil at their home.
“The authorities only told me that Siraj tried to escape and fell to his death,” Al Ghazal said. “I cannot confirm or deny anything else about the incident. I raised Siraj, and seeing him killed is very sad and painful for our family, and we cannot bear it. As a family, we demand a transparent and fair investigation into the circumstances of Siraj’s death. We will not baselessly accuse or exonerate anyone.”
The Benghazi Internal Security Service should immediately conduct an independent, impartial, and transparent investigation into the circumstances of Duqman’s death and hold accountable those responsible for any unlawful actions, Human Rights Watch said.
Eastern authorities The Libyan Arab Armed Forces (LAAF), an armed group, and its affiliated security agencies and militias control eastern and southern Libya. A subsidiary elected government in the east is known as the “Government of Libya”. Their opponents are the Tripoli-based Government of National Accord (GNU), which was formed after a UN-brokered political dialogue, and its affiliated armed groups control western Libya.
Dughman and two others Arrested On October 1, they attended a seminar to discuss the consequences of the severe flooding caused by the collapse of the Derna dam.
Dugman was the head of the Benghazi cell. Libya Strategic and Future Research CenterThe Libyan Research Organization, which organized the seminar, said in a statement that the meeting was aimed at discussing the overall situation in Libya following the floods in eastern Libya. Al-Baaja is the chairman of the Libyan Political Bureau Libya National PartyAl Daeisi is a member of the Political Bureau and Al Bishari is the party’s secretary general. Al Ghazal said Duqman is not affiliated with any political party or group.
According to reports on social media and in the Libyan media, the men were arrested following a complaint filed by someone who attended the seminar. Al-Ghazal has categorically denied any allegations against his grandson, calling the complaints “baseless and malicious.”
On April 20, the security agency videoA spokesman claimed that Duqman was detained for organizing the meeting with the intention of overthrowing the political establishment and Libyan Arab forces in the east.
Catastrophic flood In September 2023, a hurricane in eastern Libya mainly affected the coastal city of Derna, killing at least 4,352 people and leaving at least 8,000 missing. Despite early warnings, officials in eastern Libya issued conflicting evacuation orders and imposed a curfew after two dams collapsed, trapping people in the path of the floods. Libyan experts expressed concerns about the preparedness of dams before the storm.
Soon after the floods, the Libyan Attorney General’s Office launched a domestic investigation into the incident, and Libyan non-governmental organizations and Human Rights Watch Already called Conduct an independent international investigation.
Asher Shwar, leader of the Libyan National Party and future presidential candidate explain In an interview on October 31, he said he had received information that the investigation into Dughman, al-Baaja, and al-Bishari had been completed and that they had been acquitted. Dughman’s grandfather told Human Rights Watch that he knew that the security services had questioned Siraj, but he did not know whether Siraj had been questioned by the prosecution.
Libyan authorities have failed to charge the men with cognizable crimes for nearly seven months, resulting in their arbitrary detention. Human Rights Watch said Al-Baaja, al-Bishari, Eldaessi and al-Oreibi should be released immediately.
On April 21, the United Nations Support Mission in Libya urge “The authorities should conduct a transparent and independent investigation into the circumstances of (Dugman’s) death.” The delegation stressed that Dugman and the four men held with him “were arbitrarily arrested and detained in 2023” and that they “had never been formally charged or appeared in court,” and called for their immediate and unconditional release.
Friends and relatives of these people have previously Express There are concerns about the conditions of their detention and warnings that Baja suffers from heart and kidney problems and requires specialized medical care.
On April 29, the U.S. Embassy in Libya Urge the authorities Conduct a “full investigation”. EU Delegation EU member states’ diplomatic missions in Libya also urged the authorities to conduct a “thorough, transparent and independent investigation” into the incident and called for “the immediate release of all arbitrarily detained individuals and reiterated the importance of respecting due process and the rule of law throughout Libya.”
Libya’s criminal justice system is weak and suffers from serious due process problems, Human Rights Watch said. Judges, prosecutors, and lawyers face harassment and attacks by armed groups. Military courts continue to try civilians. Dozens of people across Libya are being held for long periods without trial in militia-run prisons that are under only nominal control of the authorities. Inhumane conditions are prevalent in some facilities, including severe overcrowding, torture, and ill-treatment. A report It found that “there are reasonable grounds to believe that the conduct that occurred undermined judicial independence and undermined the rule of law.”
“Dugman died in custody, and the Benghazi Internal Security Service bears a great deal of responsibility for this,” Salah said. “The authorities should immediately release all those arbitrarily detained in connection with this case.”
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