A prominent watchdog on Friday criticized the interim government in eastern Libya for its lack of greater efforts in finding and rescuing Libyan member of parliament Seham Sergewa, who was abducted from her home in the city of Benghazi on July 1
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 16th August, 2019) A prominent watchdog on Friday criticized the interim government in eastern Libya for its lack of greater efforts in finding and rescuing Libyan member of parliament Seham Sergewa, who was abducted from her home in the city of Benghazi on July 17.
The interim government, which controls the east of the country and is supported by the Libyan National Army (LNA), has denied its and any of its allied forces' involvement in the kidnapping, the Human Rights Watch said.
According to the eastern government's interior minister, Ibrahim Boushnaf, unidentified "terrorist groups who infiltrated Benghazi" are responsible for the abduction. However, Sergewa's relatives as well as some Benghazi residents who are aware of the situation believe that LNA-linked groups are somehow involved.
"Blaming the kidnapping of an outspoken sitting member of parliament on unidentified terrorists is not helping find out where she is. The authorities need to do everything they can now to identify the kidnappers and locate Sergewa, and to ensure protection for her family," the deputy middle East and North Africa director at Human Rights Watch, Eric Goldstein, said.
The kidnappers have reportedly shot Sergewa's husband and one unidentified person, with the former currently at a Benghazhi hospital with gunshot wounds to the eye and leg.
The night before Sergewa was abducted, she did an interview with a pro-LNA tv station during which she expressed disagreement with the ongoing armed conflict in Libya, affirmed her support for a unity government and denounced "extremists" on both sides, Human Rights Watch said.
Libya has been undermined by conflict since long-time leader Muammar Gaddafi was overthrown and killed by US-supported Islamists in 2011. The eastern part of the country is governed by a parliament in Tobruk and supported by LNA. The UN-backed Government of National Accord, headed by Prime Minister Fayez Sarraj, operates in the country's western areas and is headquartered in the capital of Tripoli.
