Tripoli – 2020. UNSMIL condemns the destruction of the Zawit Bin Issa, Sufi shrine in the city of Sirte on 5 February 2020 and the reported arrest of a number of Sufis in Sirte.

UNSMIL recalls that the incidents appear to violate the right to freedom of religion or belief and the right not to be subjected to arbitrary arrest and detention.

The destruction of religious shrines is also prohibited by international humanitarian law, and intentional attacks on religious monuments constitute war crimes. UNSMIL calls on the authorities, in control of the city of Sirte, to investigate and bring the perpetrators to justice.