While addressing the UN Security Council on Wednesday International Criminal Court (ICC) Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda said Libya remains entangled in a “cycle of violence, atrocities and impunity”, nearly a decade since the Court began its work in the country.
“There has been an escalation of violence”, she stated, citing reports indicating a “high number of civilian deaths, thousands of persons internally displaced, and a sharp increase in abductions, disappearances and arbitrary arrests across Libya”.
The Prosecutor underscored that without the “unequivocal support” of the Council and international community to end the Libyan conflict, the country risks being “embroiled in persistent and protracted conflict and continued fratricide”.
She said “Perpetrators of serious international crimes are emboldened when they believe they will never face justice, adding that this “cycle of impunity has provided a breeding ground for atrocities in Libya”.
She pointed out that with the fugitives at large, “justice still eludes the victims of their alleged crimes”.
The Prosecutor underscored the need for “a concerted international effort to ensure accountability for atrocity crimes” to break the cycle.
Condemning all unlawful violence in Libya, she spelled out, “Let me be clear: I will not hesitate to bring new applications for warrants of arrest against those most responsible for alleged crimes that fall under the jurisdiction of the ICC”.
