(Beirut) – A Libyan political analyst who had been arbitrarily detained in eastern Libya for nearly seven months died under suspicious circumstances on April 19, 2024, Human Rights Watch said today. Libyan authorities should immediately and impartially investigate the death of Shirazi Dughman, a political analyst with the General Directorate of Internal Security in Benghazi.
On October 1, 2023, the Benghazi-based Directorate of Interior Security arrested Daghman, along with Fathi al-Baajja, a university professor and former member of the 2011 National Transitional Council, and politician Tarek al-Bishari, accusing them of plotting to “subvert the military.” In October, the directorate also arrested and detained Abraham al-Bishari, a journalist and former diplomat. Nasser El-Daessiand political activist Salem Al-Oreibi were also implicated in the attack. Libyan authorities have not charged any of them with any cognizable crime.
“The eastern Libyan authorities’ poor detention conditions and blemished record of lack of due process raise serious questions about the circumstances of Dughman’s death,” said Hanan Salah, deputy Middle East and North Africa director at Human Rights Watch. “The eastern Libyan authorities and the Tripoli-based prosecutor general should urgently investigate Dughman’s death.”
In a video statement released on April 20, Benghazi’s Directorate of Internal Security said Daghman died on April 19 after “attempting to escape through a bathroom window by climbing up an outdoor pipe and falling headfirst from a great height.”
Siraj Dughman’s brother, Hamid Dughman, first announced his death in a Facebook post on April 19. Dughman’s grandfather, Saleh al-Ghazal, told Human Rights Watch that he had been allowed to visit his grandson four times since his detention and that he had been treated humanely, and that he had visited the four other detainees twice. Saleh said the family retrieved Dughman’s body from Al Jala’a Hospital in Benghazi on the day he died and buried him the following morning. Saleh said that Siraj’s body had been affected by the incident and that, out of consideration for the family’s feelings, only a partial body was shown during the wake at their home.
“The authorities have only told me that Siraj was trying to escape and fell to his death,” Al Ghazal said. “I cannot confirm or deny anything more about what happened. I raised Siraj and it is extremely painful, difficult and unbearable for our family to see him like this. As a family, we ask that the investigation into the circumstances of Siraj’s death be transparent and impartial. We will not baselessly blame or exonerate anyone.”
The Benghazi Internal Security Directorate should immediately conduct an independent, impartial, and transparent investigation into the circumstances of Daghman’s death and hold accountable those responsible for any wrongdoing, Human Rights Watch said.
The eastern administration is made up of the armed group Libyan Arab Army (LAAF) and associated security services and militias, which control eastern and southern Libya. The associated civilian administration based in the east is known as the “Government of Libya”. Its rival, the Tripoli-based Government of National Accord (GNU), established after a UN-brokered political dialogue, and associated armed groups, controls western Libya.
Daghman and two others were arrested on October 1 after taking part in a discussion at a symposium on the impact of the Derna Dam collapse after devastating floods killed thousands.
Dughman was head of the Benghazi branch of the Libyan Center for Strategic and Future Studies, a Libyan research institute that hosted the symposium. The center said in a statement that the meeting aimed to discuss the overall situation in Libya after the floods in eastern Libya. Al-Baajja is head of the Libyan National Party’s politburo, Al-Daisi is a member of the party’s politburo and Al-Bishari is the party’s secretary-general. Al-Ghazal said Dughman does not belong to any political party or group.
Social media and Libyan media reports said the men were arrested following a complaint from someone who attended the seminar. Al Ghazal categorically denied any allegations against his grandson, calling them “baseless and malicious.”
In an April 20 security video, a spokesman claimed Dugman was detained for organizing a meeting with the intention of overthrowing political institutions and the eastern-based Libyan Arab Army.
Devastating floods in eastern Libya, mainly hitting the coastal city of Derna, have left at least 4,352 people dead and at least 8,000 missing in September 2023. Despite early warnings, authorities in eastern Libya issued conflicting evacuation orders and imposed curfews that trapped people in the path of the floodwaters after two dams collapsed. Libyan experts had expressed concerns about the preparedness of the dams ahead of the storm.
The Libyan Public Prosecutor’s Office opened a domestic investigation into the incident shortly after the floods began, but Libyan nongovernmental organizations and Human Rights Watch are calling for an independent international investigation.
Ashour Shuweil, leader of the Libyan National Party and a presidential candidate in the upcoming elections, said in an interview on October 31 that he had received information that investigations into Dughman, Al-Baaja, and Al-Bishari had been completed and that they had been acquitted. Dughman’s grandfather told Human Rights Watch that he knew the security services had questioned Shirazi, but did not know whether the prosecutor’s office had questioned him.
The Libyan authorities’ failure to charge the men with any apparent crimes for nearly seven months led to their arbitrary detention. Al-Bahja, Al-Bishari, Eldaessi, and Al-Oreibi should be released immediately, Human Rights Watch said.
April 21, United Nations Assistance Mission in Libya Urged “The authorities must conduct a transparent and independent investigation into the circumstances surrounding this incident.” [Dughman’s ] The mission stressed that Daghman and the four men accompanying him were “arbitrarily arrested and detained in 2023” and “have never been formally charged or appeared in court,” and called for their immediate and unconditional release.
Friends and relatives have previously raised concerns about the conditions of his detention, warning that Al Bahja has heart and kidney problems and needs specialist medical treatment.
On April 29, the US Embassy in Libya called on authorities to conduct a “thorough investigation.” The same day, the European Union Delegation and diplomatic missions of EU member states to Libya also called on authorities to conduct a “comprehensive, transparent and independent investigation into the incident” and to “reiterate the importance of the immediate release of all arbitrarily detained individuals and the upholding of due process and the rule of law throughout Libya.”
Libya’s criminal justice system is weak and there are serious due process concerns, Human Rights Watch said. Judges, prosecutors, and lawyers are at risk of harassment and attacks by armed groups. Military courts continue to try civilians. Dozens of people are held for long periods without trial across Libya in prisons run by militias and under nominal control of the authorities. In some facilities, inhuman conditions, including overcrowding, torture, and ill-treatment, are widespread. A 2023 UN report said there were “adequate grounds to believe that actions have been taken to undermine the independence of the judiciary and limit the rule of law.”
“The Interior Security Directorate in Benghazi bears much of the responsibility for Daghman’s death in custody,” Salah said. “The authorities should immediately release all those arbitrarily detained in connection with this case.”
