ICC prosecutor: peace and stability in sight for Libya News
ICC prosecutor: peace and stability in sight for Libya

International Criminal Court (ICC) [official website] Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda [official profile] gave a statement [text] to the UN Security Council (UNSC) [official website] Thursday suggesting that peace and stability could soon be achieved in Libya. Bensouda credits [press release] the UN-facilitated dialogues towards establishing a Libyan Government of National Accord and the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) [official website] for the progress being made towards ending the “seemingly endless cycle of violence” and political division in Libya. Bensouda expressed concern about the “large scale crimes” that continue to be committed by all parties in the conflict amounting to no less than 60 civilian deaths per month, and pledged the ICC’s commitment to undertaking further investigations in Libya. Bensouda stressed the need for adequate funding from the UNSC and assistance from other States to respond to the crimes and continue working towards peace in Libya.

The Libyan conflict [JURIST backgrounder] has resulted in widespread violence and destruction within the country. The violence has prompted the UN and the international community to step in and take action. In April UNSMIL strongly condemned [JURIST report] the continuous airstrikes on the town of Zintan, noting a high danger to civilians. In July Bernardino León, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Libya, condemned [UN News Centre report] the rising hostilities in Benghazi, which has taken a heavy toll on the civilians in the area. In October the UNSC introduced [JURIST report] a resolution to allow the European Union to inspect and seize vehicles suspected of smuggling migrants from Libya.