The International Criminal Court (ICC) has taken Khaled Mohamed Ali El Hishri into custody, after authorities in Germany surrendered the Libyan suspect to The Hague earlier this week. El Hishri is wanted for crimes against humanity and war crimes allegedly committed in Libya between 2015 and 2020.

German authorities arrested El Hishri on 16 July on a sealed ICC warrant. He had been held in detention in Germany until his transfer to the ICC’s detention centre on Monday.

According to the ICC, El Hishri is accused of being one of the most senior officials at the Mitiga Prison complex in Tripoli, where thousands of detainees were held for prolonged periods. Prosecutors allege that he “committed directly himself, ordered or oversaw” murder, torture, rape and sexual violence “from February 2015 to early 2020”.

The case forms part of the ICC’s long-running investigation into crimes committed in Libya, first authorised by the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) in 2011. Briefing the UNSC last week, ICC Deputy Prosecutor Nazhat Shameem Khan said there was “a new momentum towards justice in Libya”, noting that crimes in detention facilities had long remained a “no-go area for accountability”.

She warned that ICC officials continued to face intimidation, adding that it is “the victims of murder, sexual violence, torture and the other most serious crimes addressed by our Court that stand to lose the most from these coercive actions”.

Although Libya is not a party to the Rome Statute, the country has accepted ICC jurisdiction for crimes committed between 2011 and the end of 2027. The court still has nine outstanding arrest warrants relating to the same situation, including one for Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, the son of former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.

Another wanted figure, Osama Elmasry Njeem, was detained in Italy earlier this year but was released and sent back to Libya within days. The ICC publicly reminded Rome that all states party to the Rome Statute, including Italy, are obligated to cooperate with the court.
El Hishri is expected to appear before ICC judges shortly to confirm his identity and rights. A confirmation of charges hearing will follow, where judges will determine whether the evidence presented by prosecutors is sufficient to send the case to trial. That process is likely to take several months.

Established in 2002, the ICC prosecutes individuals accused of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. 

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