New International Commission of Jurists report on Libya

The International Commission of Jurists has just issued a new legal briefing, Entrenching the Rule of Law in Libya: Security Sector's Accountability Through Civil Control and Oversight (July 2022). Section five discusses the need to exclude military court jurisdiction over crimes under international law, and provides helpful references to domestic and international sources. The ICJ recommends that Libyan authorities:

• Include in the Constitution a provision that expressly excludes the jurisdiction of military tribunals to try and adjudicate serious violations of international human rights law and IHL, including crimes under international law;
• Amend the Military Penal Code, the Military Code of Criminal Procedure and any related laws to:

o Transfer the competence to try and adjudicate crimes under international law from military tribunals to ordinary civilian courts;

o Limit the jurisdiction of military tribunals to specifically military offences committed by armed force members that do not constitute human rights violations; and 

• Ensure that military tribunals, when trying and adjudicating offences under their jurisdiction, comply with international fair trial standards.