Tripoli, 8 December 2013 - The United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) welcomes the release from Zawiya on 7 December of Muhammad al-Barghuthi and three other senior members of the Social Council of the Warfallah Tribes following more than one year in detention without charge or trial.

These releases took place in the week in which the Law on Transitional Justice was promulgated by the General National Congress. The law requires all detainees still held without judicial process to be released or handed over to the judiciary within 90 days of its promulgation.

Special Representative for the Secretary-General for Libya Tarek Mitri said that “the releases in Zawiya together with the promulgation of the Law on Transitional Justice are important steps in the difficult path towards justice and national reconciliation.” He added: “I call for a speedy resolution of all cases of prolonged detention outside the judicial oversight of the State, in accordance with the law.”

UNSMIL is ready to provide support for the implementation of the Law on Transitional Justice and all other Libyan efforts that aim to lay solid and lasting foundations for a just and democratic society where human rights and the rule of law prevail.