By Buba Gagigo
Ebrima Drammeh, a Gambian migration activist based in Malta, has strongly condemned what he describes as a surge of hateful agitation against Black migrants and refugees in Libya, driven by government officials and local groups.
“After hateful agitation against Black migrants and refugees by government officials, Black people in Libya are experiencing an outbreak of racist violence, human rights abuses and discrimination. Between March 12th and 16th, raids, mass arbitrary arrests, assaults, murders, and collective expulsions of Black people have been occurring in Western Libya. The people targeted by this violence are mostly African migrants and refugees including Gambian, but also Black Libyans and Tunisians,” Ebrima Drammeh said.
Detailing reports from migrants on the ground, Drammeh highlighted a series of violent crackdowns across multiple Libyan cities:
“In Sabrata, a group of unidentified militias accompanied by civilians raided black people’s houses to arrest hundreds and take them to detention centers, murdering at least one Sudanese refugee in the process. Similar raids were conducted in Janzour by the Stability Support Apparatus, Emergency Police, and Internal Security. The 6th Support Battalion also arrested hundreds of black people in Al-Serraj. In Ben-Gashir, Battaillon 444 evicted migrants and refugees from their houses, burnt their belongings, and told them to never come back, also warning the landlords that offering accommodation to any migrant would be considered as facilitating illegal migration,” he explained.
He further said In Tajoura, the EU-trained Directorate to Combat Illegal Migration carried out a raid where they caught hundreds of migrants and refugees and again transferred them to detention centers.
“In Al-Madina Gadima, a district of Tripoli, similar raids were conducted by the police, the EU-trained Directorate to Combat Illegal Migration and Special Deterrence Forces. Mass arrests also happened in Misrata, where hundreds were brought to concentration camps by unidentified militias. In Ghut-Shaal, another district of Tripoli, a group of Libyan civilians committed a pogrom against black people, targeting all African shops with the permission and complicity of local authorities and security forces,” he said.
Drammeh also revealed reports of sexual violence against migrant women and at least two documented murders of Black individuals.
“In Tarik Al- madar, on the night of Friday, 14 March, a pregnant woman from Niger was killed by a Libyan citizen. She got hit by a car while the victim and her husband were coming back from the mosque. The number of similar incidents is likely much higher than what is currently known. Comrades on the ground also report Black people being fired from their jobs and expelled from their rented houses and apartments, solely on the basis of their skin color. Up until now, the dehumanization we have seen and experienced in Libya against migrants and refugees has been mostly for profit. EU-supported militias and criminals arbitrarily arrest people in order to enslave them in construction or to work in households and fields,” he explained.
He said If they refuse or run away, they are mistreated and tortured and their families are forced to pay ransoms.
“The racist dimension we are witnessing now is a novelty. This violence follows inflammatory hate speech and conspiracy theories propagated by Government of National Unity (GNU) authorities against migrants and refugees, and its motivation is a xenophobic and racist desire to expel all black people from the country. This racist violence colludes with the EU goals of “preventing irregular migration” and follows several meetings of the EU ambassador with GNU authorities to discuss “combating human smuggling and border management”. This closeness, and the EU’s silence about the racist violence in Libya, indicates the EU’s tacit encouragement of this violence as long as it serves its anti-migrant objectives,” he said.
He emphasized that the sheer brutality of these crimes, their widespread nature, the blatant racial discrimination, and their targeted intent once again amount to crimes against humanity.
“Who is responsible? Ebrima migrant situation and Refugees in Libya and its Alliance have identified some of those allegedly responsible for these abuses. This is not an exhaustive list, but we wish to see all these individuals brought to court to respond for their criminal actions, either in Libya, in the EU, or in The Hague: The Libyan Government of National Unity holds the highest political responsibility for the crimes committed,” he said.
He accused Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh and Minister of Interior Emad Al-Trabelsi of actively spreading dehumanizing hate speech that incites genocide and directly ordering violent attacks against Black migrants and refugees.
“Libyan militias, security forces, and warlords are the direct perpetrators of this violence, as well as failing to prevent racist violence from civilians. Among them, we have identified these actors as the main alleged perpetrators: The EU-trained Department to Combat Illegal Migration (DCIM) and its head Mohamed al-Khoja The Libyan Police, headed by the wanted war criminal recently released by Italy, Osama Elmasry Njeem.The RADA Special Deterrent Forces and its head Abdul-Raouf Kara Even if most Libyans are peaceful and some have bravely raised their voices in solidarity, some Libyan civilians are being complicit in these violent crimes, fired migrants from their jobs, expel them from their homes, and hand over their Black neighbors to the police or even perpetrate the racist violence themselves,” he said.
He stated that the European Union has been actively funding, training, equipping, and politically backing the DCIM and other Libyan forces to block migrants from reaching Europe—despite clear evidence that these entities have been involved in crimes against humanity.
“In the last months, the EU delegation in Libya has met with GNU and Haftar authorities to agree on further cooperation on anti-migrant action. A communication to the ICC already identified the high-ranking officials implicated. But also mid-ranking officials are instrumental in this criminal cooperation,” he explained.
Drammeh identified two key European officials whom he accused of enabling human rights abuses in Libya. He alleged that Nicola Orlando, the EU Ambassador to Libya, has been actively coordinating political and material support for Libyan actors involved in these violations while refusing to publicly condemn their actions. Similarly, he accused Francisco Joaquin Gaztelu Mezquiriz, a European Commission official, of continuously funding the Libyan Coast Guard, the Directorate to Combat Illegal Migration (DCIM), and other entities despite being aware of their involvement in grave crimes.
He further condemned the Libyan Government of National Unity (GNU) for openly advocating the expulsion of African migrants and inciting violence against them. “Civilians and militias are carrying out these brutal attacks, while the EU continues to provide them with training, equipment, and support. We fear for the lives of our friends and comrades in Libya and strongly denounce this ongoing genocide against Black people,” he stated.
Drammeh called for immediate action to end the violence and hold perpetrators accountable.
“We demand an end to the hateful agitation spread by the Libyan GNU and the brutality it has fueled. The assaults, mass expulsions, torture, detentions, and discrimination must cease, and those responsible must face justice. Vulnerable populations, including refugees fleeing war, must be granted protection. We urge Libyan civil society to reject racism and stand in solidarity with those targeted by these attacks,” he declared.
He urged EU member states to establish safe pathways for migrants through their embassies in Libya and create humanitarian corridors for those at risk.
“Immediate action is needed to evacuate those in danger to safe locations. The EU must halt all funding and cooperation with Libyan authorities, including the Directorate to Combat Illegal Migration (DCIM), the Coast Guard, and other entities implicated in crimes against humanity. We demand that the EU publicly condemn the racist incitement and mass violence perpetrated by the Government of National Unity (GNU) and its militias against migrants, refugees, and Black people. Furthermore, the EU must take responsibility for the actions of the forces it has trained and equipped. Continuing to finance and support Libyan military and police units only deepens the EU’s complicity in these atrocities,” he stated.
Drammeh also called on the International Criminal Court (ICC) to broaden its investigation into Libya to include crimes against humanity targeting refugees, migrants, and Black individuals.
“The ICC must abandon its double standards and begin investigating the EU and its member states as co-perpetrators of crimes against humanity in Libya, given their active role in supporting these violations. We also urge the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to publicly denounce the ongoing violence against war refugees and asylum seekers while working to expand resettlement programs and humanitarian corridors for those fleeing Libya.
“As refugees, migrants, and Black people in Libya, we may not have weapons to defend ourselves against this racist violence—but we have our voices, and we will not be silenced,” he concluded.
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