Mahmoud al-Werfalli | |
|---|---|
| Native name | محمود الورفلي |
| Born | 1978 (1978) |
| Died | 24 March 2021(2021-03-24) (aged 42–43) Benghazi, Libya |
| Cause of death | Gunshot wound |
| Allegiance |  Libyan Army (2000–2011) Libyan National Army (2014–2021) |
| Branch | Libyan Special Forces |
| Years of service | 2000–2021 |
| Battles / wars | First Libyan Civil War Second Libyan Civil War |
Mahmoud Mustafa Busayf al-Werfalli (Arabic:محمود مصطفى بوسيف الورفلي; 1978 – 24 March 2021) was a Libyan general, commander inal-Saiqa, an elite unit of theLibyan National Army, one of the warring factions inLibya'scivil war since 2014. Al-Werfalli was indicted in 2017 in theInternational Criminal Court for thewar crimes of murder and ordering the murder of non-combatants under article8(2)(c)(i) of the Rome Statute.[1] As of 6 April 2019[update], the ICC had two outstanding warrants for al-Werfalli's arrest.[2][3] He was assassinated on 24 March 2021 inBenghazi.[4][5]
Al-Werfalli was born in 1978.[1] He was a member of theWarfalla tribe, which was loyal to former Libyan rulerMuammar Gaddafi and from which many members of Gaddafi's security forces were recruited.[1][6]
Al-Werfalli began his career in theLibyan Army in 2000 after graduating from the country's military college. He eventually became a member of the eliteal-Saiqa unit and remained a member when theLibyan Civil War against Gaddafi's rule began in 2011.[1] Soon thereafter al-Saiqa, under the command of Wanis Bukhmada, defected and joined the rebels.[1]
Following the end of Gaddafi's rule, al-Saiqa aligned itself with the Libyan National Army, led byKhalifa Haftar, and fought against theShura Council of Benghazi Revolutionaries in and around the city ofBenghazi from 2014 to 2017 in abattle for control of the city. By at least 2017, al-Werfalli was a regional commander of al-Saiqa and oversaw at least one detention center.[1] In that year al-Werfalli gained international notoriety by appearing in videos posted by al-Saiqa's social media accounts that depicted him executing or ordering the execution of prisoners.[7] In total 7 videos were published.[8] One video in particular allegedly depicted the execution of 20 men.[9] Al-Werfalli's actions were singled out by theOffice of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, which documented several of these incidents and called for a full investigation.[10][11]
Mahmoud al-Werfalli was indicted on 15 August 2017 with the war crime of murder with regard to the situation in Libya. The arrest warrant against him alleges that he "appears to be directly responsible for the killing of, in total, 33 persons in Benghazi or surrounding areas, between on or before 3 June 2016 and on or around 17 July 2017, either by personally killing them or by ordering their execution."[1] The arrest warrant notes that in seven incidents, which were videoed and posted on al-Saiqa's social media accounts, al-Werfalli either appeared to order the execution, or conducted the execution himself, of prisoners.[1] The Court notes in the arrest warrant that "the executions were exceptionally cruel, dehumanising and degrading."[1] Two days after the Court issued the warrant of arrest, theLibyan National Army (LNA) announced that it had arrested al-Werfalli and that he was under investigation.[12]
On 24 January 2018, he was accused of executing 10 prisoners in Benghazi.[3][13][14] Automatically after that, anInterpol red notice against him, on behalf ofInternational Criminal Court, was issued.
In December 2019, theUS Treasury Department included Al-Werfalli on its sanctions list, accusing him of committing serious human rights violations.[15]
In its statement, the US Treasury said that Al-Werfalli was filmed on January 24, 2018, "carrying out a mass execution of ten unarmed detainees in Benghazi. After each detainee was shot in the head one by one, Al-Werfalli fired freely on a group of ten detainees who were executed."
In September 2020, he was also sanctioned by theEU, for the same criminal charges.[16]
On 24 March 2021, Libyan media quoted a spokesman for the "Libyan National Army" as confirming that "the military commander, Mahmoud Al-Werfalli, was killed in Benghazi."
Al-Werfalli died after his car was hit by bullets nearAl-Arab Medical University in Benghazi. His brother was injured in the attack and was taken to intensive care.[17]
On Jan. 24, Mr Werfalli appeared in a video posted on Facebook executing ten blindfolded individuals