International Criminal Court judges have cleared the way for the tribunal’s first trial focused on crimes in Libya, ordering suspect Khaled Mohamed Ali El Hishri to face charges including murder, rape and torture allegedly committed at the notorious Mitiga prison.
In a written decision issued Thursday, the judges unanimously upheld 17 charges against El Hishri after a May hearing in which prosecutors presented evidence that he abused prisoners at the facility between 2014 and 2020. The panel found there were “substantial grounds to believe” that El Hishri bears responsibility for the alleged offenses.
The ruling marks a significant step for the ICC’s Libya investigation, which began after the United Nations Security Council referred the country to the court in 2011 as Libya descended into violence during the uprising that toppled longtime ruler Moammar Gadhafi.
A milestone for Libya’s ICC cases
Deputy Prosecutor Nazhat Shameem Khan described the decision as a major moment for victims of detention-related abuses in Libya, saying it moves the court “a step closer to delivering justice for thousands of victims who were unlawfully arrested, detained and subjected to severe suffering in Mitiga prison.”
Prosecutors allege that El Hishri served as a senior commander at Mitiga prison and oversaw its women’s section. According to the charges, sexual violence was pervasive at the facility. Prosecutors also say his alleged brutality earned him the nickname “Angel of Death.”
The judges’ decision does not amount to a finding of guilt. Rather, it confirms that prosecutors have met the legal threshold needed to send the case to trial. El Hishri will have the opportunity to contest the charges when proceedings begin.
The court did not immediately set a trial date.
Defense challenged ICC jurisdiction
El Hishri’s attorney, Yasser Hassan, had asked judges to reject the case, arguing that the ICC had no jurisdiction. The court addressed that challenge in a separate ruling this week, confirming its authority to prosecute the matter.
El Hishri has been in the Netherlands since December, when Germany transferred him to ICC custody. German authorities arrested him in July under a sealed warrant issued by the court.
The case is closely tied to Libya’s prolonged instability after 2011. Although Libya is not a member of the ICC, the U.N. Security Council referral authorized the tribunal to investigate alleged crimes committed as the country plunged into lawlessness during and after the uprising against Gadhafi.
The ICC later issued an arrest warrant for Gadhafi, but he was killed by rebels before authorities could detain him and send him to The Hague.
Mitiga prison at the center of the allegations
The allegations against El Hishri focus on Mitiga prison, a facility that prosecutors say was the site of severe abuse over a period stretching from 2014 to 2020. The upheld charges include some of the gravest crimes prosecuted by the ICC, including murder, rape and torture.
For victims and families who have long sought accountability for abuses linked to Libya’s detention facilities, the ruling offers a possible path toward a public trial. It also places conditions inside Mitiga prison under the scrutiny of international judges, prosecutors and defense lawyers.
The ICC’s threshold at this stage is lower than at trial. Judges must determine whether there are substantial grounds to believe the suspect committed the crimes alleged. A conviction would require prosecutors to prove the charges beyond reasonable doubt before the court.
Ruling lands amid renewed pressure on the ICC
The Libya decision came during a week of renewed international pressure on the court. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced Monday that Washington was beginning what he called a “sweeping campaign to dismantle the threat posed by the International Criminal Court to U.S. sovereignty.”
Rubio said the United States would press the ICC’s 125 member countries to leave the institution, impose sanctions on organizations that cooperate with it and prevent court employees from traveling to the United States. He also said nations that “enjoy the benefits of the U.S. security umbrella” would be urged to reject ICC jurisdiction over American citizens.
President Donald Trump’s administration has already sanctioned ICC chief prosecutor Karim Khan and 12 other court staff members. The measures were imposed in retaliation for arrest warrants targeting senior Israeli officials over the war in Gaza, as well as the tribunal’s investigations involving U.S. personnel in Afghanistan.
The court’s move in the Libya case underscores the ICC’s continuing role in prosecuting alleged atrocities referred to it by the U.N. Security Council, even as the institution faces political resistance from powerful states.
What happens next
With the charges confirmed, the case will move toward trial, though no opening date has been announced. The next phase is expected to include further procedural steps as judges, prosecutors and defense lawyers prepare for proceedings in The Hague.
For the prosecution, the case represents a chance to bring before judges a set of allegations centered on detention, sexual violence and command responsibility in post-Gadhafi Libya. For the defense, the trial will be the first full opportunity to challenge the evidence behind the 17 confirmed charges.
For Libya, the decision revives international attention on crimes alleged during years of fragmentation and armed rule. More than a decade after the Security Council referral, the ICC is now poised to hold its first Libya-focused trial.
