PHR has been addressing human rights violations in Libya since 2006, when it advocated for the release of five Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian physician wrongfully convicted and sentenced to death for allegedly infecting children with the AIDS virus in a Libyan hospital. In a joint delegation with the International Federation of Health and Human […]

The identification and repatriation of individuals killed and “disappeared” during the recent conflict in Libya and the previous regime of Colonel Muammar Qaddafi constitute one of the most urgent challenges facing the interim government of Libya. The legitimacy of any future government will be based in part on the way in which these identifications and […]

ICC Chief Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo has announced his intention to investigate mass rape as a weapon of war in Misrata, Libya during last year’s conflict. Recognizing the harsh physical punishments and cultural dishonor that Libyan women face when reporting sexual assault, Ocampo says he will craft an investigation that calls not upon victims but rather […]

Reports that Libya’s former spy chief, Abdullah al-Senussi, was apprehended late last week in Nouakchott, Mauritania, have sparked international discussion about where best to prosecute this wanted war criminal. France has demanded al-Senussi’s extradition from Mauritania, where he was tried in absentia for an attack on a commercial airliner which killed 170 people, including 54 […]

This week, the UN Security Council unanimously voted to extend the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) for another year. UNSMIL, comprising a small team of international experts, was established last September to support post-conflict reconstruction. The core objectives of the mission include strengthening Libyan institutions, promoting rule of law, supporting transitional justice, and […]

The United Nations concluded on March2, 2012 that both pro-Qaddafi forces and rebels committedwar crimes during the Libyan conflict last year. In a report of the International Commission of Inquiry on Libya,the UN determined that pro-Qaddafi forces committed crimes against humanity,defined as the most serious attacks on human dignity and human rights. According to the […]

Doctors in Libya are still under attack – even though the Libyan conflict officially ended last August. In December 2011, Qaddafi loyalists attacked the Director of Tripoli’s Central Hospital, holding him at gunpoint and forcibly detaining him and doctors went on strike after another doctor was assaulted on hospital property. These attacks constitute egregious violations […]

This report, which combines medicine, forensic science, and eyewitness testimony to paint a stark picture of life and death in detention in Tripoli, provides a detailed and comprehensive forensic account of the 32nd Brigade massacre under Khamis Qaddafi on August 23, 2011 in Khalat Al Forjan, Tripoli. PHR’s investigation highlights the urgent need for Libya […]

As the revolutions collectively known as “the Arab Spring” have rocked the Middle East and North Africa, medical professionals have often been caught in the crossfire. PHR's Richard Sollom joins WHYY NPR in Philadelphia to discuss doctors under siege in the Arab world, and the pursuit of “medical neutrality” on Capitol Hill and in the […]

In the aftermath of the collapse of Muammar Qaddafi’s Libyan regime, potential evidence of past human rights violations has surfaced. However, even as Libyans navigate the challenges of building a new government, they must also address how to identify and preserve evidence of past crimes. Reports suggest that a recently discovered mass grave may contain […]

When Libyans first took to the streets to protest Colonel Muammar Qaddafi’s autocratic rule in February 2011, Qaddafi’s response was quick and brutal: attack protesters and target civilians in a deliberate campaign to quash dissent across the country. This report documents some of the conflict’s most severe human rights violations that must be addressed as […]

Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) joined partner organizations in applauding the United States government’s announcement to pursue a second term on the UN Human Rights Council. The Council is a key international body that addresses human rights violations and crisis situations worldwide. In recent weeks alone the Human Rights Council has taken swift action to […]

Medical Evaluation of Fathi al-Jahmi Report   Scott Allen, MD, of Physicians for Human Rights, examines Fathi al-Jahmi at Tripoli Medical Center on March 13, 2008. (Photo credit: copyright 2008 Fred Abrahams/Human Rights Watch) We are saddened at PHR to learn of the death earlier this morning of Fathi al-Jahmi, a prominent Libyan prisoner of […]