Although French President Macron continues to sponsor the holding of elections to stabilize the country, since 2011 Libya has been anything but a stable and peaceful territory. This is what the facts say (two governments, a line-up of militias and armed groups, no political coalition that can hold together the various interests and interests), what international observers say and what the organizations working in the North African country say.
After last Sunday's clashes in Tripoli, which involved rival armed groups and caused 26 deaths and 75 injuries, the medical and humanitarian organization Medici senza frontiere (Msf), present in Libya for seven years, is taking a stand. In a communiqué, it states that "the scandals have subsequently compromised the lives of around 8,000 refugees, asylum seekers and migrants, arbitrarily detained in the capital's detention centers. Some of them are being held for up to 48 hours in an area surrounded by camps without access to their homes".
According to Ibrahim Younis, commissioner in Libya for Msf: "Recent findings show that Libya is not a safe place for migrants, refugees and asylum seekers. Many are fleeing from war-torn countries or have spent months detained in horrible conditions in the hands of human traffickers before being transferred to these detention centers. These people, already extremely vulnerable, are now trapped in another conflict without the possibility of escape. They don't have to be prisoners simply because they are surrounded by security or a better life. They should be immediately relocated and evacuated to a safe country".
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees has pointed out that almost half of the people held in detention centers are refugees from regions in conflict, including Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia and Sudan. Under international law, these people have a right to protection and yet, Msf says, "European countries have put in place policies that prevent asylum seekers from leaving Libya. These policies have exacerbated the already poor and sovraffollate living conditions in the Tripoli detention centers".
Present in Libya since 2011, Msf has been working in Tripoli's detention centers since 2016, providing basic health care, assistance for mental health and the provision of medical and hygienic services. Msf also works in the detention centers of Khoms, Zliten and Misurata and provides medical consultations in Bani Walid.
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