Gaddafi’s Forces Are Carrying Out a Campaign of Disappearances Inside Libya to Crush Growing Opposition

Libyan forces loyal to Colonel Mu’ammar al-Gaddafi have carried out a campaign of enforced disappearances of government critics, writers, journalists, pro-democracy activists -- and even children -- to crush growing opposition to his rule, Amnesty International said today in a new briefing paper.

The report by an Amnesty International team inside Libya details more than 30 cases of individuals who have disappeared since before protests began, including political activists and those suspected of being rebel fighters or supporters of fighters.

The organization said there is every reason to believe, given the circumstances of the enforced disappearances, that these individuals are at serious risk of torture and ill-treatment. The documented cases are believed to represent only a small proportion of the total number of people who have been detained or have disappeared in the custody of Gaddafi’s forces in recent weeks.

The organization called for an immediate stop to this “outrageous” campaign in violation of international law. Malcolm Smart, director of Amnesty International’s Middle East and North Africa program, said: “It appears that there is a systematic policy to detain anyone suspected of opposition to Colonel al-Gaddafi’s rule, hold them incommunicado detention, and transfer them to his strongholds in western Libya.”

He warned that Colonel al-Gaddafi could be held responsible in an international court for any crimes committed by his forces during this conflict. “All those who are detained simply for peaceful activities in support of the protests must be released immediately and given safe passage home,” said Smart.

Amnesty International called on Colonel al-Gaddafi and those around him to allow immediate independent access to those detained in order to check on their safety and help protect them from torture, and to urgently inform their families of their whereabouts.

The organization also urged those holding detainees to ensure that all alleged or known fighters who are captured are treated humanely in line with international law, and to give them immediate access to the International Committee of the Red Cross.