Female lawyer and activist Hanan Barassi was assassinated in Benghazi
TRIPOLI, Nov 12 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The UN mission to Libya has condemned the killing of a lawyer and women’s rights activist
Hanan al-Barassi who was shot in her car in the east of the country.
The United Nations Support Mission in Libya said that al-Barassi had been a vocal critic of corruption, abuse of power and human rights violations and that “her tragic death illustrates the threats faced by Libyan women as they dare to speak out.”
“UNSMIL strongly condemns the killing of lawyer Hanan al-Barassi” on Tuesday “in broad daylight, in Benghazi by unidentified armed men,” the organization said Wednesday.
Barassi, 46, was well-known in the media and frequently spoke out for female victims of violence in videos that she then broadcast on social media. She also ran a local women’s rights group.
The U.N. mission said Barassi “had been a vocal critic of corruption, abuse of power and human rights violations.”
“Her tragic death illustrates the threats faced by Libyan women as they dare to speak out,” it said, also urging a prompt investigation and justice for the perpetrators.
The European Union (EU) Delegation to Libya on Wednesday also condemned the killing of a lawyer in the eastern city of Benghazi.
“We strongly condemn the heinous killing of Ms. Hanan al-Barasi, a prominent Libyan lawyer and activist, in Benghazi yesterday,” the delegation said in a statement, urging the Libyan authorities “to urgently launch a credible investigation into this killing and bring the perpetrators to justice.”
“Activists, lawyers and members of civil society are being targeted to silence the independent voices in Libya. The continued committing of murders, kidnappings and other criminal acts threaten the peace process and undermine the many efforts for stability and justice in Libya,” it said.
The statement also stressed the support of the EU for the majority of Libyans who reject violence and terrorism, oppose human rights abuses and violations, want an inclusion and participation of women and come together in peaceful and patriotic dialogue.
The Benghazi Security Directorate on Tuesday condemned the killing of al-Barasi and confirmed that “those who committed the killing do not represent the Libyan state.”
“The Benghazi Security Directorate confirms that investigation is going on in all different departments and units and that tracking continues and will not stop until the perpetrators are captured and brought to justice,” the Benghazi Security Directorate said in a statement.
According to local media, al-Barasi was killed in central Benghazi on Tuesday by unknown gunmen before they fled the scene.
Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Wednesday called for authorities in eastern Libya to “promptly investigate the apparent politically motivated killing” of Barassi.
“The killing of an outspoken lawyer in broad daylight in Benghazi will send chills through activists across the region,” said Hanan Salah, senior Libya researcher at the New York-based HRW.
“This brutal killing smacks of a cold-blooded execution,” she said. “Armed groups in Benghazi seem to think they are invincible and immune from accountability. The authorities there need to prove them wrong and ensure that they face justice for their crimes.”
Barassi was buried the same day in a Benghazi cemetery. Images of her funeral were widely shared online, some showing her tombstone reading “Martyr for Truth.”
Moments before she was killed, Barassi had been broadcasting a live Facebook video in which she criticized allies of the east’s military strongman, Khalifa Haftar, and vowed to reveal their alleged crimes.
Haftar joined the condemnations of Barassi’s killing and sent condolences to her family and friends, in a statement issued by his spokesman.
The killing sparked an outpouring of anger in Libya, which has endured years of lawlessness and conflict since the toppling and killing of longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi in a 2011 uprising.
The country has been divided between a U.N.-recognized Government of National Accord based in Tripoli and a rival administration in the east backed by Haftar. — NNN-AGENCIES
