London (dpa) – A year after the start of the uprising in Libya the militia groups who helped topple ex-leader Muammar Gaddafi are “largely out of control” and committing widespread human rights abuses, rights group Amnesty International said Thursday. In a report on the country, Amnesty said armed militias operating across Libya committed widespread human rights abuses with impunity, fueling insecurity and hindering the rebuilding of state institutions. The report, entitled Militias threaten hopes for new Libya, documents widespread and serious abuses, including war crimes, by a multitude of militias against suspected Gaddafi loyalists, who were unlawfully detained and tortured – sometimes to death. The London-based human rights group said African migrants and refugees were also targeted in revenge attacks, as people were being forcibly removed from their communities. The new Libyan authorities had “done nothing” to investigate the abuses and hold those responsible to account. “A year ago Libyans risked their lives to demand justice. Today their hopes are being jeopardized by lawless armed militias who trample human rights with impunity,” said Donatella Rovera of Amnesty International. In January and early February 2012, Amnesty International delegates visited 11 detention facilities in central and western Libya used by various militias. It said that at 10 of these locations, detainees said they had been tortured or ill-treated. Several detainees said they had confessed to rape, killings and other crimes they had not committed just to end the torture. At least 12 detainees held by militias have died after being tortured since September, Amnesty said. Their bodies were covered in bruises, wounds and cuts and some had had nails pulled off. BM ShortURL: http://goo.gl/MT1n4 Tags: Amnesty, Militias, Violence Section: Human Rights, Latest News, Libya
