Cairo Human Rights Institute condemns execution of prisoners in Eastern Libya

The Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies and the Libyan Platform Coalition have condemned the execution of 16 people in eastern Libya last August, including 10 executed on August 23 and 6 on August 29, following sham trials before military courts.

The Institute stated that the executions constitute a violation of the right to life and a “dangerous precedent” given the ongoing moratorium on the death penalty in Libya since 2011. 

It also raised concerns about the independence of the judiciary and guarantees of a fair trial, including the right to defense, public hearings, and allegations of torture and coerced confessions.

The Cairo Institute called on the Libyan authorities to disclose the identities of those sentenced, the charges, the sentences, and the legal basis for the executions, to verify whether civilians were among them, and to open an independent and transparent investigation into the circumstances of the trials and executions.

 It further demanded a moratorium on the executions with a view to their eventual annulment.