Security Council member states called on Wednesday for greater cooperation between the International Criminal Court (ICC) and Libyan authorities, urging for steps to be taken to ensure a more stable ICC budget.
Libya’s ambassador to the UN Taher El Sonni said that while his delegation appreciated the ICC Prosecutor’s efforts, there was nothing new to be said, explaining that “for the Libyan people, the Libyan file before the ICC is stagnant and has been stagnant for years.”
El Sonni said Libya had been committed to holding accountable all those who perpetrated crimes and atrocities, and its judiciary was committed to fair and impartial trials.
He urged the ICC Prosecutor to share the results of his Office’s work, adding that Libya “cannot remain under the mandate of the ICC indefinitely because the Libyan judiciary was not established yesterday; it has a long history.”
In the meantime, France’s ambassador to the UN welcomed progress on the lines of inquiry outlined in the ICC strategy. She emphasized the need for cooperation with Libyan authorities to combat impunity and acknowledged progress made by the Office – as a result of such cooperation – on detention centres and crimes against migrants, leading to the arrest and prosecution of key suspects.
The United States’ ambassador said Washington was disappointed at the absence of steady and reliable cooperation from the Libyan national authorities. He called on them to grant visas to investigators, enforce arrest warrants and swiftly finalize the establishment of an Office of the Prosecutor liaison in Tripoli.
The Russian representative at the UN Security Council’s meeting called the ICC’s activities ineffective and politicized. She said: “The only real priority for the ICC is made-to-order trials which are shamelessly paid for by Western countries.” She suggested that the Security Council – which referred the situation in Libya to the ICC – consider recalling the case.
The Prosecutor of the ICC, Karim Khan, told the United Nations Security Council on Wednesday that the implementation of a renewed strategic plan for the work of the ICC in Libya had provided significant and clearly discernible results, adding that real and profound resource restrictions in Libya were having an impact on his Office’s work.
