Libya: Transition and U.S. Policy
Christopher M. Blanchard
Specialist in Middle Eastern Affairs
August 9, 2012
Congressional Research Service
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www.crs.gov
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CRS Report for Congress
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epared for Members and Committees of Congress
Libya: Transition and U.S. Policy
Summary
Libya’s post-conflict transition is underway, as Libyans work to consolidate change from the 40-
year dictatorship of Muammar al Qadhafi to a representative government based on democratic
and Islamic principles. On July 7, 2012, Libyan voters chose 200 members of a General National
Congress (GNC) in the country’s first nationwide election in nearly 50 years. The GNC will
oversee national government affairs, appoint a new cabinet, and determine the method for
selecting members of a drafting committee to prepare a new constitution. If voters approve a
constitution in a national referendum, then new elections are to be held by mid-2013, bringing a
nearly two-year transition process to a close.
In the wake of the July election, Libya’s interim leaders remain answerable to a wide range of
locally and regionally organized activists, locally elected and appointed committees, prominent
personalities, tribes, militias, and civil society groups seeking to shape the transition and
safeguard the revolution’s achievements. The shift from an appointed interim government to
elected leaders may provide the government more democratic legitimacy and better enable it to
make decisions in key areas, such as security, fiscal affairs, and post-conflict justice and
reconciliation. Libyans are debating the proper balance of local, regional, and national authority
and the proper role for Islam in political and social life.
Security conditions are mostly stable, although armed non-state groups continue to operate in
many areas of the country amid periodic flare-ups in a number of local conflicts. In some cases,
these groups work to provide security in coordination with national authorities and in other cases
they operate on an independent basis. Interim leaders have issued orders calling for armed groups
to hand over land and facilities to state authorities, and registration of former revolutionary
fighters for recruitment and/or retraining is underway. It remains unclear whether armed groups
will more fully embrace reintegration campaigns under the newly elected government.
The proliferation of military weaponry from unsecured Libyan stockpiles—including small arms,
explosives, and shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missiles (MANPADs)—remains a serious concern in
Libya and in neighboring countries. Security Council Resolution 2017 specifically addresses this
threat. The Obama Administration is implementing a program with Libyan authorities to retrieve
and disable certain types of weapons, including MANPADs. Non-government reporting indicates
that arms depots remain unsecured. U.S. officials believe that nuclear materials and chemical
weapons components are secure (including previously undeclared chemical weapons), and
Libyan leaders have recommitted to destroying the remnants of Qadhafi’s chemical arsenal.
On March 12, 2012, the United Nations (U.N.) Security Council extended the mandate of the
U.N. Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) for one year in order to assist the transitional
authorities with security and administrative challenges. U.N. Security Council resolutions also set
conditions for the sale of arms and training to the Libyan government and partially lift a U.N.
mandated asset freeze for certain purposes. The U.S. Treasury Department has issued licenses that
authorize the release of over $30 billion in formerly blocked assets belonging to Libyan entities.
As of August 2012, the United States government has provided more than $200 million in
assistance to Libya since the start of the uprising in 2011, including $89 million in humanitarian
assistance, $40 million for weapons abatement, and $25 million in nonlethal assistance from
Department of Defense stockpiles. As Libyans work to shape their future, Congress and the
Administration have the first opportunity since the 1960s to fully redefine U.S.-Libyan relations.
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Contents
Background...................................................................................................................................... 1
Assessment ...................................................................................................................................... 4
Issues Before Congress.................................................................................................................... 5
Legislation in the 112th Congress .............................................................................................. 6
Key Developments and Issues ......................................................................................................... 9
General National Congress Election and Results .................................................................... 10
Constitutional Assembly and Federalism Debate.................................................................... 12
Security and Human Rights Challenges .................................................................................. 13
Weapons Proliferation and Related Concerns ................................................................... 13
Chemical Weapons Destruction and Nuclear Material...................................................... 14
Islam and Politics in Libya ...................................................................................................... 16
United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) ............................................................ 17
Libyan Assets and Oil Exports ................................................................................................ 17
Libyan Assets .................................................................................................................... 17
Libya’s Oil Production, Exports, and Revenue ................................................................. 17
International Criminal Court (ICC) and United Nations Human Rights Council
Investigations........................................................................................................................ 18
Figures
Figure 1. Libya At a Glance............................................................................................................. 2
Figure 2. Libya Uprising and Conflict Timeline.............................................................................. 3
Figure 3. Libya’s Proposed Transition Timeline.............................................................................. 3
Tables
Table 1. U.S. Assistance to Libya FY2010-FY2013........................................................................ 7
Contacts
Author Contact Information........................................................................................................... 19
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Background
Political change in neighboring Tunisia and Egypt helped bring long-simmering Libyan reform
debates to the boiling point in January and early February 2011. In recent years, leading Libyans
had staked out a broad range of positions about the necessary scope and pace of reform, while
competing for influence and opportunity under the watchful eye of hard-liners aligned with the
enigmatic leader of the 1969 anti-monarchy revolution, Muammar al Qadhafi. Qadhafi had long
insisted that he held no formal government position, but by all accounts he maintained his 40-
plus-year hold on ultimate authority, until his death in October 2011, as the “reference point” for
Libya’s byzantine political system. Ironically, that system cited “popular authority” as its
foundational principle and organizing concept, but it denied Libyans the most basic political
rights. Tribal relations and regional dynamics, particularly long-held resentments of Qadhafi
among residents in the east, continue to influence Libyan politics. Rivalries are emerging among
locally organized revolutionary groups with differing experiences during Qadhafi’s rule and the
2011 uprising. Political groups with differing priorities are now vying to shape Libya’s transition.
Qadhafi’s claimed policy reversals on weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and terrorism led to
the lifting of most international sanctions in 2003 and 2004, followed by economic liberalization,
oil sales, and foreign investment that brought new wealth to some in Libya. U.S. business
gradually reengaged amid continuing U.S.-Libyan tension over terrorism concerns that were
finally resolved in 2008. During this period of international reengagement, political change in
Libya remained elusive and illusory. Some observers argued that Qadhafi supporters’ suppression
of opposition had softened, as Libya’s international rehabilitation coincided with steps by some
pragmatists to maneuver within so-called “red lines.” The shifting course of those red lines had
been increasingly entangling reformers in the run-up to the outbreak of unrest in February 2011.
Some Libyans and outside observers welcomed government efforts to rehabilitate imprisoned
Islamists and allow the return of some exiled opposition figures. Ultimately, inaction on the part
of the government in response to calls for guarantees of basic political rights and for the drafting
of a constitution suggested a lack of consensus, if not outright opposition to meaningful reform.
The 2011 revolution was triggered in mid-February by a chain of events in Benghazi and other
eastern cities that quickly spiraled out of Qadhafi’s control. The government’s loss of control in
these cities became apparent, and broader unrest emerged in other regions. A number of military
officers, their units, and civilian officials abandoned Qadhafi. Qadhafi and his supporters
denounced their opponents as drug-fueled traitors, foreign agents, and Al Qaeda supporters. Until
August 2011, Qadhafi and his forces maintained control over the capital, Tripoli, and other
western cities. The cumulative effects of attrition by NATO airstrikes against military targets and
a coordinated offensive by rebels in Tripoli and from across western Libya then turned the tide,
sending Qadhafi and his supporters into retreat and exile. September and early October 2011 were
marked by sporadic and often intense fighting in and around Qadhafi’s birthplace, Sirte, and the
town of Bani Walid and neighboring military districts. NATO air operations continued as rebel
fighters engaged in battles of attrition with Qadhafi supporters.
Qadhafi’s death at the hands of rebel fighters in Sirte on October 20 brought the revolt to an
abrupt close, with some observers expressing concern that a dark chapter in Libyan history ended
violently, leaving an uncertain path ahead. The self-appointed interim Transitional National
Council (TNC) and its cabinet took initial steps toward improving security and reforming national
institutions. Voters elected an interim General National Congress (GNC) in July 2012. The GNC
assumed power on August 8 and will determine the process for drafting a new constitution.
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Figure 1. Libya At a Glance
Source: Prepared by Amber Hope Wilhelm, CRS Graphics Specialist.
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Figure 2. Libya Uprising and Conflict Timeline
Source: CRS.
Figure 3. Libya’s Proposed Transition Timeline
Source: Prepared by Amber Hope Wilhelm, CRS Graphics Specialist. Derived from Transitional National
Council draft charter, August 2011 and United Nations U.N. Support Mission in Libya reporting.
Note: Subject to revision.
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Assessment
After the swell of confidence and international recognition that followed the announcement of
Libya’s liberation in late 2011, Libya’s citizens, revolutionaries, and Transitional National
Council (TNC) leadership moved haltingly down a path of political transition and economic
recovery during the first half of 2012. Political parties and civil society organizations—long
banned—have emerged in large numbers, and a lively political atmosphere now exists, as
reflected in the preparation for and conduct of Libya’s first national election in nearly 50 years on
July 7, 2012. The election of an interim 200-member General National Congress (GNC) marked
an important step on the planned transition timeline (see Figure 3 above), and many Libyans and
outside observers have expressed hope that the elected interim Congress will appoint a cabinet
that will be able to leverage its democratic legitimacy to act decisively on key issues. Like their
predecessors, Libya’s new interim leaders will face a number of chronic economic and political
challenges, some of which have been exacerbated by the consequences of the violent revolution
and complicated by the legacies of decades of Qadhafi’s patronage- and fear-based rule.
With the exception of some violent attempts to disrupt voting in eastern Libya, domestic and
international election observers reported that voting was administered professionally and
transparently, without critical interruptions or serious irregularities.1 Over 60% of registered
voters participated. The results showed a strong performance by former interim-Prime Minister
Mahmoud Jibril’s Alliance of National Forces, which won 39 of 80 “political entity” (party-list)
seats, followed by the Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated Justice and Construction party, which won
17 seats. The 120 individual candidates elected include a variety of activists, locally prominent
persons, and party affiliates. The winners are now negotiating among themselves to form
coalitions and identify members for the new interim cabinet that will replace the outgoing TNC
and its executive authority.
Some expert observers of Libya’s domestic politics have emphasized the general weakness and
fractured condition of Libya’s political landscape after 40 years of idiosyncratic abuse by Qadhafi
and his supporters. Qadhafi purposely undermined state institutions, including the military, and
manipulated tribal, regional, and political groups to maintain power. As a result, transitional
authorities have inherited weak national institutions, and competition among some groups has
intensified during the transition. Political support for interim leaders among some Libyans has
waned in light of the government’s failure to rapidly improve basic services, ensure security, or
deliver expected financial support via salaries, subsidies, and relief payments. U.S. officials
applauded the conduct of the election, welcomed the newly elected GNC, and have not described
ongoing political debates and intermittent security incidents as grave threats to the transition.
Security concerns remain the immediate priority, as a series of isolated armed conflicts and
attacks on international targets in several cities have raised serious questions about the ability of
the interim authorities to ensure order. As of August 2012, militia groups remained active and
influential, with some acknowledging and participating in government efforts to assert central
security authority. Public displays of weapons, attacks on international targets, and isolated armed
clashes underscore the threats posed by some groups. Security officials continue to rely on
1 European Union Election Assessment Team, Preliminary Statement, July 9, 2012; Carter Center Election Observation
Mission Preliminary Statement, July 9, 2012; Shahed Network for Election Monitoring, Statement on Election Day -
Morning Period, July 7, 2012. Author served as an international election observer with the Carter Center Election
Observation Mission in Ajdabiya and Benghazi in eastern Libya.
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irregular forces to provide security in much of the country. Differences of opinion over regional
representation and the balance of power between national and local authorities may become a
subject of greater debate and potential source of conflict as the transition continues.
Libya’s borders and hundreds of suspected weapons sites remained loosely secured, although
limited efforts to secure them have begun, with the support of the United Nations Support
Mission in Libya (UNSMIL), the United States, and other governments. The proliferation of
small arms, man-portable air defense missile systems (MANPADS), and some heavy weaponry
among Libyans and beyond Libya’s borders has led some counterterrorism and arms trafficking
experts, as well as officials in neighboring countries, to express concern about the conflict’s
longer-term implications for security in Libya and the region. Most security experts expect that
unexploded ordnance, explosive remnants, and looted weaponry will present a domestic and
regional challenge for many years. Officials in the United States and Europe have expressed
concern about the potential for violent extremists to benefit from conditions in Libya and are
seeking to maintain counterterrorism cooperation with the post-Qadhafi government.
Taken together, these factors suggest that securing U.S. interests in Libya may require sustained
attention and commitment of resources. Administration officials argue that U.S. policy must
remain flexible in order to effectively shape and respond to developments. Administration
officials and Members of Congress may choose to reexamine U.S. interests in Libya; discuss
possible outcomes for Libya’s transition and their potential implications; and define the
authorities for and costs of potential U.S. responses.
Issues Before Congress
Many Members of Congress welcomed the announcement of Libya’s liberation and the formation
of an interim cabinet, while expressing concern about security in the country, the proliferation of
weapons, and the prospects for a smooth political transition. Congress continues to exercise
oversight over U.S. diplomatic, security, and assistance efforts in Libya and is considering
appropriation and authorization requests and notifications related to Libya programs. Securing
stockpiles of Libyan conventional and chemical weapons has emerged as an issue of broad
congressional concern, as has ensuring that transitional authorities act in accordance with
international human rights standards in pursuing justice and handling detainees. Members may
also debate Libya’s regional influence, whether as a political example or a potential source of
instability. Administration officials and congressional decision makers have worked together to
identify and reprogram an array of previously appropriated funding to respond to developments in
Libya since 2011 (see Table 1 below).
• Medical and humanitarian assistance has supported Libyans injured or displaced
during the revolution as well as Libyans and non-Libyans who fled the fighting
last year.
• U.S. programs to mitigate threats posed by weapons proliferation and to support
the political transition toward democratic government are ongoing. U.S. civilian
advisers work with Libyan forces to locate, secure, and disable shoulder-fired
anti-aircraft missiles and other weaponry (see “Weapons” below).
• U.S. civil society support for Libya’s transition is being provided under the
auspices of the State Department’s Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI) and
the $5 million Libya Transition Initiative (LTI), managed by the U.S. Agency for
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International Development (USAID) Office of Transition Initiatives (OTI). The
National Endowment for Democracy also is funding programs being
implemented by the International Republican Institute, the National Democratic
Institute for International Affairs, and Libyan civil society organizations.
For FY2013, the Obama Administration is requesting $150,000 in Foreign Military Financing
(FMF), $250,000 in International Military Education and Training (IMET) funding, and $1.25
million in Nonproliferation, Antiterrorism, Demining and Related Programs (NADR) funding to
continue engagement programs with Libyan security forces and to improve border security. A
portion of a requested $770 million Middle East North Africa Incentive Fund (MENA-IF) also
may benefit Libyans, if appropriated. As of August 2012, the House Appropriations Committee
had declined to include funding for the MENA-IF initiative in its version of the FY2013 Foreign
Operations appropriations bill (H.R. 5857). The Senate Appropriations Committee included $1
billion for the MENA-IF, an increase over the Administration’s request (S. 3241).
Congress has enacted legislation encouraging cost-matching by Libya, given its resource wealth,
and prohibiting U.S. grant funding of rehabilitation or reconstruction of infrastructure in Libya
using FY2012 funds. Similar conditions or restrictions may be included in appropriations
legislation for FY2013, along with requirements for vetting of Libyan personnel participating in
security assistance programs.
Legislation in the 112th Congress
The pending FY2013 Foreign Operations appropriations legislation discussed above constitutes
the main legislation relevant to Libya currently before Congress. Debate concerning the future of
U.S. policy toward Libya is being shaped by the events of the transition period, and may
increasingly reflect issues that were prominent prior to the uprising, including U.S.
counterterrorism priorities, economic opportunities in Libya, security cooperation, and human
rights. Recent legislation adopted includes:
• The FY2012 State Department and Foreign Operations appropriation (Division I
of P.L. 112-74), which provides up to $20 million in bilateral Economic Support
Fund (ESF) account assistance “to promote democracy, transparent and
accountable governance, human rights, transitional justice, and the rule of law in
Libya, and for exchange programs between Libyan and American students and
professionals.” The law prohibits the use of FY2012 funding for non-loan-based
rehabilitation or reconstruction of infrastructure in Libya. The committee report
on the Senate version of the bill directs the use of NADR account funding for
disarmament and securing Libyan weapons stockpiles.
• The FY2012 National Defense Authorization Act (P.L. 112-81), which was
amended (S.Amdt. 1180) to include, in Section 1235, a requirement that the
Director of National Intelligence submit to Congress an assessment “that
accounts for the disposition of, and the threat to United States citizens and
citizens of allies of the United States posed by man-portable air-defense systems
that were in Libya as of March 19, 2011.” The law also requires the
Administration to develop a strategy for mitigating potential related threats and
submit a detailed report to Congress, in unclassified and classified form.
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Table 1. U.S. Assistance to Libya FY2010-FY2013
(thousands of dol ars, fiscal year of appropriation unless noted)
Account/Program FY2010
FY2011
FY2012
FY2013
Estimate
Request
Economic Support Fund (ESF)
- - - TBD
Foreign Military Financing (FMF)
150 - 150 150
International Military Education and Training (IMET)
319 - 200 50
Nonproliferation, Antiterrorism, Demining and
Related Programs (NADR)
Anti-Terrorism Assistance (NADR-ATA)
-
-
800
1,000
Export Control and Related Border Security Assistance
- 500 1,300 250
(NADR-EXBS)
Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI)
3,530 3,145
-
Middle East Response Fund (MERF)
- 25,615 -
-
USAID Middle East Regional Funding
- 175 - -
Democracy Fund
- 600 - -
Development Assistance
- 470 - -
Humanitarian Funding
Emergency Refugee and Migration Assistance (ERMA)
-
25,000
-
-
International Disaster Assistance (OFDA)
-
13,300
-
-
International Disaster Assistance (FFP)
-
15,700
-
-
Migration and Refugee Assistance (MRA)
-
35,000
8,800
-
Weapons Abatement Programs (NADR subaccounts)
Counterterrorism Engagement (CTE)
95
-
-
-
Conventional Weapons Reduction (CWD)
-
5,750
-
-
Global Threat Reduction (CTR)
500
-
350
-
Nonproliferation Disarmament Fund (NDF)a -
34,300
-
-
Regional Strategic Initiative (RSI)
-
9
-
-
Transition Assistance (USAID-OTI)
- 4,000 1,500 -
Department of Defense Nonlethal Support
25,000 -
-
-
Drawdown Authorityb
Source: U.S. Department of State communication to CRS, June 2012.
a. NDF funds reprogrammed from multiple fiscal years - FY2003, FY2004, FY2009 and FY2010.
b. During the 2011 conflict, the Administration notified Congress of its intent to offer up to $25 million in
nonlethal material support to groups in Libya. U.S. officials argued that the rebels’ most pressing needs were
command and control, communications, training, organization, and logistics support.
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• Section 598 of P.L. 112-81 also reflects language introduced in S. 1822, and
directs the Secretary of Defense to assess the feasibility and cost of identifying,
exhuming, repatriating, and reinterring the remains of U.S. service members
buried in Tripoli, Libya, who were killed in the explosion aboard the USS
Intrepid in Tripoli Harbor in 1804.
Other legislation introduced in the 112th Congress related to Libya includes
• H.R. 3725, which would direct the President to vest blocked Libyan assets “to
defray the full costs of Operation Odyssey Dawn and United States participation
in NATO Operation Unified Protector and any associated humanitarian efforts
undertaken on behalf of the Libyan people,” and “to satisfy and pay in full all
final awards of compensation to United States nationals ordered by the Foreign
Claims Settlement Commission in its Libya Claims Program pursuant to the
Libyan Claims Resolution Act (P.L. 110-301) and the International Claims
Settlement Act of 1949 (22 U.S.C. 1621 et seq.).”
• H.Con.Res. 75, which would state the sense of Congress that,
the funds of the regime of Muammar Qaddafi that have been frozen by the United States
should be returned to the people of Libya for their benefit, including humanitarian and
reconstruction assistance, and the President should explore the possibility with the
Transitional National Council of using some of such funds to reimburse NATO countries for
expenses incurred in Operation Odyssey Dawn and Operation Unified Protector.
• S. 1520, which would restrict the transfer of blocked Libyan assets to Libyan
authorities for other than humanitarian purposes until the President certifies to
Congress “that the Transitional National Council or successor government is
fully cooperating with requests for information and ongoing investigations
related to the bombing of Pan Am flight 103 and any other terrorist attacks
attributable to the government of Muammar Qaddafi against United States
citizens.” The bill would provide national security waiver authority to the
President and require reporting on U.S. efforts to obtain information regarding
terrorist attacks along with Libyan cooperation.
U.S. Military Operations in Libya and Congressional Debate
Debate between Congress and the Obama Administration about congressional authorization and the cost of U.S.
military operations in Libya diminished during 2011 as the prospect of a sustained military campaign requiring
extended U.S. investment and force deployments became less likely. In early 2011, some Members of Congress
questioned the President’s authority to commit U.S. forces to the conflict; criticized the extent of the President’s
consultation with Congress; and sought a clear definition of U.S. objectives, costs, and operations. Some Members
became increasingly assertive in their efforts to force President Obama to seek explicit congressional authorization
for continued U.S. military involvement. A number of proposed resolutions and amendments to appropriations and
authorization bills sought to require reporting on U.S. strategy and operations or to proscribe limits on the
authorization or funding for continued U.S. military operations in Libya. Others sought to authorize the continued use
of U.S. Armed Forces in support of NATO operations, short of the use of ground troops.
On June 3, 2011, the House adopted H.Res. 292 (Rol no. 411), which directed the Administration to provide
documents on consultation with Congress and a report “describing in detail United States security interests and
objectives, and the activities of United States Armed Forces, in Libya since March 19, 2011.” The Administration
submitted the report on June 15, 2011. The House of Representatives rejected a series of other resolutions seeking
to authorize or de-authorize continuing U.S. participation in Operation Unified Protector. U.S. and NATO military
operations ended in late October 2011.
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Key Developments and Issues
Libyans’ initial euphoria at the downfall of Muammar al Qadhafi has settled into an uneasy mix
of hope and fear about the country’s future.2 The country’s rich energy resources, its young
population, its strategic location, and its economic growth potential present significant
opportunities for positive change. However, the immediate consequences of the 2011 war in
Libya—namely the wide dispersal of weaponry, the military mobilization of the society, the
disruption of state finances and institutions, damaged infrastructure, and the injury and
displacement of many Libyans—continue to confront Libya’s interim authorities and citizens.
The deeper consequences of Qadhafi’s divisive rule—inadequate human capital development,
sclerotic and corrupt bureaucracy, political manipulation of local and tribal groups, and
widespread property dispossession—also are complicating the transition and present thorny
problems to overcome.
The General National Congress (GNC) election on July 7 marked a shift toward democratic
governance that has been mirrored in a series of local elections in different cities held in 2012.
During the initial phase of the transition period, the Transitional National Council (TNC) and its
executive cabinet struggled to balance the responsibilities of interim governance, the lack of a
clear democratic mandate for them to make and enforce decisions, and the expectations of an
energized population demanding tangible change and swift results. Compensation and medical
treatment for conflict victims, maintenance of basic security, and the establishment of rule of law
remain the key concerns of Libyans and interim leaders, amid ongoing political debates about the
principles that will shape the new national constitution.
Libya’s civil conflict led to the emergence of local governing councils and militias that in some
cases are competing with each other and with interim leaders for authority. The elected status of
the GNC may alleviate some of the perceived democratic deficit that has haunted the interim
leadership to date, but the country’s challenges are significant, popular patience has waned, and
over time the country’s considerable opportunities may be at risk.
The GNC election and the planned constitutional drafting process also have reignited long-
subdued regional tensions between eastern and western Libya. Activists in eastern Libya have
demanded equal regional representation in the GNC and the constitutional drafting committee,
despite the fact that eastern Libya has a smaller population than western Libya. Broader debate
focuses on the relative merits of administrative decentralization or regional autonomy in a federal
system. National reaction to easterners’ demands has been mixed at best, with many Libyans
embracing calls for decentralization while expressing concern that the political assertion of
regional identity and calls for autonomy risk dividing the country and may spark renewed
conflict.3 Similar debates, concerns, and risks featured prominently during Libya’s founding as a
unified state under United Nations auspices in the early 1950s and shaped national politics until
Qadhafi and his allies overthrew the monarchy in 1969.
2 Ian Martin, the United Nations (U.N.) Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of the U.N. Support
Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) has summarized the challenges and opportunities facing Libya in a series of detailed
presentations to the Security Council in 2012. See U.N Documents S/PV.6707, January 25, 2012; S/PV.6728, February
29, 2012; S/PV.6768, May 10, 2012, and S/PV.6807, July 18, 2012.
3 UNSMIL’s Ian Martin said in his July 2012 report that “the strength of feeling regarding past marginalization of the
east is widely shared there and requires political solutions.” S/PV.6807, July 18, 2012.
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General National Congress Election and Results
On July 7, 2012, Libyan voters chose 200 members of the General National Congress in the
country’s first national election since 1965. Domestic and international observers praised officials
and voters for the conduct of the election, noting the short time frame and significant logistical
challenges that Libyans overcame. Of the 2.8 million voters who registered to vote, roughly 62%
voted in the July election, with turnout consistent across most areas of the country. A combination
of national and local security officials and militia groups provided security for election sites, with
local volunteers serving as election administrators at over 1,500 polling locations. Local conflict
delayed voting in the southern town of Kufrah, and, in the east, armed groups attempted to disrupt
the election by destroying sensitive voting materials and attacking polling sites in Ajdabiya,
Benghazi, and other areas. Local authorities employed ad hoc security responses, and, with U.N.
support, national authorities replaced critical material in time for voting to proceed.4
The election featured a mixed electoral system of 120 individual candidate seats and 80 political
entity list seats. Seats were distributed nationally on the basis of population, with western Libyan
districts receiving 100 seats, eastern districts receiving 60 seats, and southern districts receiving
40 seats. Debate over the electoral system in the run-up to the election revolved around this
regional distribution of seats (see below) as well as the best ways to encourage the selection of
nationally oriented figures rather than advocates for discrete local, tribal, or party agendas.
Advocates for individual candidacy argued that a party-dominated system would empower better-
organized or better-funded groups such as the Muslim Brotherhood-backed Justice and
Construction Party. Advocates of greater party representation argued that individual candidates
would reflect the elite interests of the wealthy and of local families and tribes at the expense of
average Libyans and groups with national perspectives.5
The mixed electoral system appears to have succeeded in yielding a group of representatives that
balances party and local interests and creates opportunities for negotiating coalitions across party
and regional lines. The body of elected individual candidates is made up of locally prominent
individuals, political activists, and some national figures, while the successful political entity lists
reflect the range of competing trends in Libya’s emerging political order. The Alliance of National
Forces, a coalition of civil society organizations led by former interim Prime Minister Mahmoud
Jibril, won 39 of the 80 political entity seats and performed particularly well in Benghazi, Tripoli,
and other urban areas. The Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated Justice and Construction Party won 17
seats and was most successful in Tripoli, central Misuratah, and south-western Libya. Overall, 21
political entities won seats, of which 15 entities received only one seat. Margins of victory for
both individual candidates and political entities varied, with some candidates and entities
leveraging local notoriety to score decisive victories and other candidates winning based on
narrower margins of a few hundred votes or less. Women won 33 seats, 32 of which were
“political entity” seats. Political entities were required to alternate male and female candidates on
district lists as well as alternate their top list candidates by gender to better ensure female
representation.
Many media outlets have characterized the result as a signal that Islamist political parties are less
popular in Libya than they are in neighboring Egypt or Tunisia. The timing and unique
4 The author served as an international election observer in Ajdabiya and Benghazi.
5 Abd al Sattar Hutaytah, “Libyan Parties Marginalized Amidst The Rise of The Role of Tribal And Militia Leaders,”
Al Sharq al Awsat (London), January 31, 2012.
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circumstances surrounding the election may make that judgment premature. Most political
entities and candidates emphasized national unity during the election rather than seeking to define
themselves in religious terms or advance Islamist priorities. Libya remains a relatively
conservative society and many political figures and entities make frequent reference to Islam and
its role in Libyan social and political life. Topics such as the role of religious law in the legal
system are shaping debate over the new constitution. Historically, Libyan Islamist groups have
not played the same role in political life as they have in other Arab countries; their political
fortunes may improve as they increase their public profile and campaign more directly on issues
that resonate with conservative Libyan voters.
Libya’s Emerging Political Movements
Political parties and al opposition groups were severely restricted under the Al Senussi monarchy and banned under
Qadhafi. Formal political pluralism was frowned upon by many members of the Qadhafi-era elite, even as, in the
period preceding the unrest, some regime figures advocated for greater popular participation in existing government
institutions. Dynamics among expatriate Libyan opposition figures and Libya-based activists reflect the subtle legacies
of Libya’s former monarchy period, changes to monarchy-era power structures under Qadhafi, and the events of the
anti-Qadhafi revolution.6 Prior to the 2011 uprising, Libya’s opposition movements were often categorized broadly as
Islamist, royalist, or secular-nationalist in orientation. Their activities and effectiveness were limited by government
repression and infiltration, disorganization, rivalry, and ideological differences.
The July 2012 election served as an important first step for Libyans working to overcome a shared lack of experience
in formal political organization, competition, and administration. In election campaigning, many movements and parties
emphasized common themes of national unity, security, social solidarity, and support for those killed and wounded in
the revolt. They also presented differing priorities and opinions on controversial issues such as national reconciliation,
security, the role of religious law in public life, and the relative merits of proposals for a federalist constitution for
Libya. Secular-nationalist and Islamist groups feature prominently among the new entities, and leftist groups and pro-
federalism movements also have emerged.
Alliance of National Forces—Led by former interim Prime Minister Mahmoud Jibril, the Alliance of National
Forces consists of nearly 60 civil society organizations and political entities united around a platform that supports a
civil state, human rights protections, and economic liberalization. The Alliance has been criticized by some Islamist
rivals for adopting religious symbols and language while advocating for a relatively secular agenda. The Alliance
platform categorically rejects relations with Israel, referring to it as “the Zionist entity.”7 The Alliance won 39 political
entity seats in the July 2012 GNC election.
The Muslim Brotherhood & The Justice and Construction Party—The Libyan Muslim Brotherhood has
existed since the 1940s and was banned under Qadhafi. It now has official recognition as a civil society organization.
The Brotherhood selected Bashir Abdelsalaam al Kabti as its General Guide at a landmark public meeting in
November 2011. Al Kabti lived in the United States for 30 years prior to his return to Libya. The Justice and
Construction party (JCP) serves as the Brotherhood’s political vehicle, but includes non-Brotherhood figures.
Mohammed Sawan serves as the head of the JCP, which won 17 political entity seats in the July 2012 GNC election.
National Front Party—The National Front for the Salvation of Libya (NFSL) was one of the most active and
prominent exile-led opposition movements during the Qadhafi era. The National Front Party represents the NFSL’s
attempt to transition from its former role in seeking to unite Libyans from abroad to leading Libyans at home. Like
other exile-led groups, the National Front is vulnerable to criticism from Libyans that are suspicious of expatriates.
The National Front won three political entity seats in the July 2012 GNC election. Its leader, Mohammed Magariaf,
won a seat and has been elected speaker of the GNC.
6 According to one analyst, the TNC leadership consisted of members from several general groups: “defectors from the
former regime elite”; “scions of the aristocratic and bourgeois families who had dominated Libya during the monarchy
(1951-69)”; exiled “members of the non-aristocratic Libyan intelligentsia and business community”; and Libya-based
“representatives of the educated elite, such as lawyers and university professors.” These individuals have struggled to
make common cause at times with Islamists, elites in western Libya, protestors, and armed volunteer fighters. See
Wolfram Lacher, “Families, Tribes and Cities in the Libyan Revolution,” Middle East Policy Council, November 2011.
7 Clause 32 of Alliance Charter, available at http://www.nff.ly/Eltahalof_Mesak.aspx. Accessed July 18, 2012.
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Constitutional Assembly and Federalism Debate
The next major step in Libya’s transition process is the drafting and approval of a new
constitution. To date, the transition has followed steps laid out in an interim constitutional
declaration issued by the Transitional National Council (TNC) in August 2011. The interim
constitution has been amended to reflect political developments over the last year, particularly
with regard to resurgent debates about federalism and regional representation in national
decision-making bodies. These issues have lurked in the background of Libyan politics since the
creation of the state in 1951. The independent kingdom of Libya united three provinces with
different historical experiences and political identities under the leadership of the eastern-Libya
based Al Senussi monarchy. Rivalry among the regions shaped the original constitution drafting
process and limited the effectiveness of the federal system it created. Resentment of the
centralization of the state, first under the easterner-dominated monarchy in the 1960s and then
under Qadhafi from the 1970s onward, subtly divided Libyans on regional lines.
A widely espoused commitment to national unity and solidarity has defined much of the political
rhetoric of the post-Qadhafi transition period. Nevertheless, some in eastern Libya fear that a
consolidation of power at the national level will continue a pattern that they claim marginalized
the east and neglected its development. As such, procedures for selecting a new constitutional
drafting body have been amended twice, each time in an effort to respond to calls from activists
in eastern Libya concerned that the constitution would be drafted on the basis of proportional
differences in population rather than equal regional representation. The TNC’s allocation of seats
for the General National Congress (GNC) election granted more populous western Libya more
seats than the east or the south, but fewer seats than a directly proportional ratio would have
guaranteed.
• In March 2012, the TNC amended Article 30 of the interim constitutional
declaration to state that the soon-to-be-elected GNC would select a body from
outside its membership to draft a constitution made up of 60 members “in the
manner of” the 60-member committee that drafted Libya’s 1951 constitution.8
The 1951 constitutional committee drew 20 members equally from each of
Libya’s three constituent regions—Tripolitania, Fezzan, and Cyrenaica.
• In July 2012, just days before the national election, the TNC issued a further
amendment stating that the constitutional committee would be directly elected by
voters rather than chosen by the GNC. 9 The move came as activists in eastern
Libya continued to protest the proportional division of seats for the GNC
elections by regional population.
Among the first decisions the elected GNC faces is whether or not to reverse the TNC’s 11th-hour
change to the GNC’s role in selecting the constitutional drafting committee. Critics of the TNC
decision point to the delay that a new election would insert in the transition process, which could
be problematic given the increasing popular demands for action on key issues. Supporters of the
TNC decision argue that accommodating key political concerns in the foundational decisions that
will shape Libya’s new constitution may be the best way to ensure that aggrieved parties do not
have grounds to fundamentally reject the transition process in the future.
8 Transitional National Council, Constitutional Amendment Number 1 of 2012, March 13, 2012.
9 Transitional National Council, Constitutional Amendment Number 3 of 2012, July 5, 2012.
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Security and Human Rights Challenges
Since late 2011, sporadic outbreaks of violence among rival militia groups, criminals, and armed
citizens have shaken Libyans’ confidence in transitional leaders and in each other. From one
perspective, the number of security disruptions is smaller than might otherwise be expected in a
post-conflict environment awash in weapons and dominated by dozens of armed groups with
varying relationships to state authority. From another perspective, the level of crime, the
continuing independence of local militia, the broad availability of weapons, and the relative
limitations of national security bodies suggest that Libya’s security remains a function of
Libyans’ self-restraint rather than the capability of security authorities. According to UNSMIL,
“Libya’s revolutionary brigades do not seek to remain in separate existence and to challenge State
authority,” but “efforts to date to integrate revolutionaries and brigades have lacked an overall
concept and coordination, and need urgent review as part of the security reform agenda for the
police and defense forces, including integrated border security and management.”10
International human rights entities and the United Nations have observed and criticized examples
of torture, unacceptable detention conditions, and extrajudicial punishment by official security
entities and militia groups across Libya. The TNC directed militia groups to abstain from abusing
prisoners or settling scores with arms, and the GNC-appointed government is likely to continue to
rely on militia groups to secure some areas of the country and hold Qadhafi-era detainees until
national security forces are more developed. In March 2012, UNSMIL estimated that between
5,000 and 6,000 detainees remained in the custody of militia groups. In July 2012, UNSMIL
argued that the elected Libyan government should urgently act to improve its judicial capacity in
order to grant detainees access to trial, obviate the need for extra-judicial action by militia groups,
and bolster the rule of law.11 Some minority groups and tribes associated with the Qadhafi regime
remain internally displaced and have been targeted by rival groups, such as former residents of
Tawergha, members of the Mashasha tribe, and the Tuareg and Tebu ethnic groups.
Weapons Proliferation and Related Concerns
The Libyan military’s massive small arms and heavy weapons stockpiles have been looted and
dispersed both within Libya and beyond its borders, creating local and regional security concerns.
Authorities in several countries, including Egypt, Niger, Algeria, Israel,12 and Tunisia, have
expressed concerns about the smuggling of Libyan weaponry across or toward their borders, and
continuing smuggling incidents and arrests reflect the broad scope of the threat. Particular
concern has been focused on the potential smuggling of shoulder fired anti-aircraft missiles
(MANPADS). U.N. and U.S. officials have not indicated that they have seen evidence that
MANPADS have been smuggled out of Libya, but believe such leakage cannot be ruled out.13
10 U.N Document S/PV.6807, July 18, 2012.
11 U.N Document S/PV.6807, July 18, 2012.
12 According to unnamed Israeli officials, “thousands” of weapons have entered Gaza from Libya, including “SA-7
anti-aircraft missiles and rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs),” but the weaponry is “not a major qualitative
enhancement” for Gaza-based armed groups. Israeli officials also have stated that “weapons are available in Libya as a
result of the unstable situation there, and Hamas has exploited it to buy weapons from Libyan smugglers.” CRS cannot
independently verify these statements, and the Obama Administration has not commented on the record regarding
reports of arms shipments from Libya to Gaza. See Reuters, “Israel sees Libya as New Source of Arms for Gaza,” July
21, 2011; and Reuters, “Israel Says Gaza Gets Anti-Plane Arms from Libya,” August 29, 2011.
13 U.N. Special Representative Ian Martin told the U.N. Security Council in late January that “there is as yet little
evidence that MANPADS have been smuggled out of Libya in significant numbers.” U.S. Assistant Secretary of State
(continued...)
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According to U.N. officials, Libyan efforts to secure the country’s borders are hampered by a lack
of internal coordination. Southern borders remain the least secure, and frequent closures of the
border with Tunisia reflect the limits of coordination with neighboring countries.
U.S.-Libyan efforts to mitigate the threats posed by the proliferation of weaponry from Libyan
military stockpiles are proceeding under the terms of a bilateral agreement on weapons abatement
signed in late 2011. The U.S. government has deployed Quick Reaction Forces of expert civilian
personnel to Libya who are embedded with Libyan military units. As of late January, they had
inspected over 120 storage areas and 1,500 bunkers, accounting for over 5,000 MANPADS
systems.
The State Department-led interagency MANPADS Task Force plans to oversee a three-phase
MANPADS accounting, recovery, and threat mitigation program for Libya and the region, to
include inventory, border control assistance, and airport security assessments.14 Their efforts are
complicated by the fact that NATO airstrikes targeted weapons depots where large numbers of the
systems may have been stored, and these systems and other weapons have been subsequently
destroyed, disrupted, or buried. The dispersal of some systems among Libyan militia and the
reluctance of Libyans to disarm are also challenges.15 In July, Assistant Secretary of State for
Political Military Affairs Andrew Shapiro was quoted as saying that Libyan “militias have control
of the MANPADS ... and other loose weapons.”16 UNSMIL has reported that U.N.-assisted
Libyan efforts “to develop safe arms and ammunition storage areas” have been “inhibited by
unclear allocations of responsibility and lack of coordination among various Libyan actors.”17
Chemical Weapons Destruction and Nuclear Material
The security of Libya’s stockpiles of declared chemical weapons material and its remaining
nuclear materials have been the subject of sustained scrutiny.18 In August 2011, the State
(...continued)
for Political-Military Affairs Andrew Shapiro stated in remarks at the Stimson Center in Washington DC in early
February 2012 that the U.S. government had not seen evidence of MANPADS leaving Libya to date although it was all
but impossible to be certain. Remarks by Andrew J. Shapiro, Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Political-Military Affairs,
Stimson Center, Washington, DC, February 2, 2012. In late February, Algerian authorities reported that they had
discovered a cache of over forty Russian-made shoulder-fired surface to air missiles near the eastern desert town of In
Amenas, southwest of the Libyan border town of Ghadames. The cache reportedly consisted of 15 SA-24 and 28 SA-7
missiles. Lamine Chikhi, “Exclusive: Algeria seizes missiles smuggled from Libya: source,” Reuters, February 18,
2012; Sihem Balhi, “Un stock découvert à In Amenas : Des missiles libyens anti-avion sur le territoire Algérien,”
Dernieres Nouvelles D'Algérie, February 19, 2012.
14 Remarks by Andrew J. Shapiro, Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Political-Military Affairs, Stimson Center,
Washington, DC, February 2, 2012.
15 In March 2012, the U.N. Secretary General reported that, “The full magnitude of the arms problem remains unknown
because access to stockpiles controlled by ‘brigades’ remains a challenge; no reliable records exist of pre-conflict
weapons stocks; and details of weapons destroyed, transferred or used during the conflict are not available.” U.N.
Document S/2012/129, March 1, 2012. For a comprehensive assessment of these challenges, see International Human
Rights Clinic (IHRC), CIVIC and Center for American Progress, “Explosive Situation: Qaddafi’s Abandoned Weapons
and the Threat to Libya’s Civilians,” August 2012.
16 John T. Bennett, “U.S. Official: No Evidence Of ‘MANPADS Leakage’ In Syria,” U.S. News and World Report -
Dotmil Blog, July 27, 2012.
17 U.N Document S/PV.6807, July 18, 2012.
18 For an overview of Libya’s declared chemical weapons and nuclear materials see U.S. State Department, Condition
(10)(C) Report—Compliance with the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling and
Use of Chemical Weapons and on their Destruction, August 2011; and International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)
(continued...)
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Department reported that prior to the conflict, Libya had destroyed over 50% of its declared
mustard agent stocks and over 40% of its declared liquid chemical weapons precursors. In late
2010, Libya had restarted the long-delayed destruction of its declared mustard agent and
precursor stockpiles, although technical problems and the outbreak of the conflict resulted in
Libya missing its May 2011 destruction deadline.
Libya destroyed the munitions for dispersing mustard agent that it had declared in 2004, and
during the 2011 conflict, U.S. officials repeatedly stated publicly that they believed the remaining
sulfur mustard agent and precursor stockpiles were secure.19 The non-weaponized nature of the
declared sulfur mustard agent and precursor materials had suggested that the material posed a
smaller threat than otherwise may have been the case.20 The TNC formally notified the
Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) on November 1, 2011, that it had
located what it believed to be undeclared chemical weapons. The OPCW has now verified that
the materials consist of sulfur mustard agent and artillery shells that are chemical munitions. The
Qadhafi government reportedly omitted the materials from its original declaration to the OPCW
in contradiction to the basic commitments it made as part of the normalization of its relations with
the United States and Europe.21
Libyan forces control the sites where the materials of concern are stored, and transitional leaders
have committed to upholding Libya’s commitment to destroy chemical weapons materials under
the mantle of the OPCW.22 Libya’s previously declared stockpiles were required to be destroyed
in full by April 2012 under a renegotiated OPCW deadline. In April 2012, transitional officials
submitted an amended destruction plan under which destruction operations would resume in
March 2013, with the goal of complete destruction of the remaining stockpiles and materials by
December 2016.23
(...continued)
Board of Governors, Implementation of the NPT Safeguards Agreement in the Socialist People’s Libyan Arab
Jamahiriya, GOV/2008/39, September 12, 2008.
19 The declared chemical materials are stored at Rabta, southwest of Tripoli and Ruwagha, near the Al Jufrah Air Force
Base in central Libya. According to the U.S. State Department, identified mustard and nerve agent precursors present in
Libya included pinacolyl alcohol, isopropanol, phosphorus trichloride, 2-chloroethanol, tributylamine, and thionyl
chloride. See State Department, Office of the Spokesperson, “Libya: Securing Stockpiles Promotes Security,” August
26, 2011.
20 For example, Colonel David Lapan, a Pentagon spokesman argued that “Even if not weaponized, there’s still a threat,
but it’s a smaller threat than if it is weaponized.” Agence France Presse, “Libya Has Mustard Gas, Lacks Delivery
Systems: Monitor,” March 10, 2011.
21 The revelation that Qadhafi withheld information about chemical agents and munitions and that the OPCW and U.S.
and European intelligence services appear to have had no knowledge of the omission raises questions about intelligence
and one aspect of the rationale for the Qadhafi government’s international rehabilitation. R. Jeffrey Smith, Joby
Warrick, and Colum Lynch, “Iran may have sent Libya shells for chemical weapons,” Washington Post, November 20,
2011.
22 The OPCW has stated that “the new authorities inherited the obligations of the old regime,” and that the OPCW “will
continue to work with the Libyan authorities to verify and destroy any newly declared stocks.” AFP, “Libya’s NTC
Pledges To Destroy Chemical Weapons: OPCW” November 4, 2011, and OPCW, “OPCW Inspectors Return to
Libya,” November 4, 2011.
23 According to the OPCW, “The OPCW will continuously maintain rotating teams of 5-6 inspectors at Ruwagha
throughout the destruction process, which OPCW officials expect should be completed for Libya’s Category 1
chemical weapons within 6 months after operations resume.” OPCW, “Canada Provides OPCW its Largest-Ever
Donation to Expedite Destruction of Chemical Weapons in Libya,” April 24, 2012; and OPCW, Libya: Facts and
Figures, accessed August 3, 2012.
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Libya’s nuclear materials also have been subject to international and U.S. oversight and joint
operations that removed highly enriched uranium and other proliferation-sensitive items. Libya’s
research reactor east of Tripoli at Tajura was converted with U.S. assistance in 2006 to operate
using low-enriched uranium. Libya also possesses a stored stockpile of at least several hundred
tons of uranium oxide yellowcake, reportedly stored near Sabha. UNSMIL considers the sale or
transfer of 6,400 barrels of uranium yellowcake remaining in Libya to be a “key priority.”
Islam and Politics in Libya
Libyans are predominantly (~90%) Sunni Muslims, and many reportedly endorse relatively
moderate approaches to Islamic law, or sharia, affiliated with the Maliki school.24 Islam has been
the official religion since independence, and the Quran is the nominal basis for the country’s law
and its social code. Most Libyans accept a prominent role for Sunni Islamic tradition in public
life, but differ in their personal preferences and interpretations of their faith. Libyan social norms
are relatively conservative and traditional, and Salafist groups, while organized and increasingly
publicly active, have not yet asserted themselves as an influential political force as they have in
Egypt.
Libyans remain engaged in a long-running public debate about the proper role for Islam in public
life—a debate that in the past has led to violence and in the present has taken on new urgency
given the opportunity to define a new constitution. Calls for and against strict interpretations and
enforcement of sharia have featured regularly in public discourse since the fall of the Qadhafi
regime. Libyans hold a wide array of views on these questions and are now freely sharing them.
During January 2012, public gatherings in the low thousands emerged in Benghazi and Misuratah
to demand that sharia be codified and enforced as the primary component of Libya’s new
constitution. Emergent groups such as Ansar al Sharia and Hizb al Tahrir support that position.
Muslim Brotherhood leaders have indicated they “are calling for the establishment of a civilian
state but with an Islamic reference.”25
Some of these views have been reflected in actions taken by transitional authorities to date. The
August 2011 interim constitutional declaration states in Article One that “Libya is an independent
Democratic State wherein the people are the source of authorities.… Islam is the Religion of the
State and the principal source of legislation is Islamic Jurisprudence (sharia).… The State shall
guarantee for non-Muslims the freedom of practicing religious rights and shall guarantee respect
for their systems of personal status.” In July 2012, the TNC issued a declaration advising the
newly elected government and constitutional committee to preserve sharia as the principal source
of legislation under the new constitution and to not submit the matter to a national referendum.26
24 International Crisis Group, “Holding Libya Together: Security Challenges after Qadhafi,” Middle East/North Africa
Report N°115, December 14, 2011, p. 9. Maliki refers to one of the traditional Sunni schools of Islamic law.
25 OSC Report GMP20120305825005, “Libyan Brotherhood Leader Urges Creation of Civil State With Islamic
Reference,” March 5, 2012.
26 TNC Decree Number 7 of 2012, July 5, 2012.
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United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL)
The United Nations Support Mission in Libya continues to operate under the mandate outlined in
Security Council Resolution 2009 and extended through March 2013 by Resolution 2040. The
United Kingdom’s Ian Martin has served as UNSMIL director, continuing the work he began in
mid-2011 as the Secretary-General’s special adviser for post-conflict and transition issues in
Libya. Martin is stepping down and his replacement has yet to be named. To date, UNSMIL
activities have included electoral advisory support, transitional justice consultation, and public
security and economic needs assessments. On December 2, 2011, the Security Council tasked
UNSMIL with “assisting and supporting Libyan national efforts to address the threats of
proliferation of all arms and related materiel of all types, in particular man-portable surface to air
missiles.” The Obama Administration has not requested specific FY2013 funding to support
UNSMIL, but the mission is funded through assessed contributions of U.N. member states,
including the United States.27
Libyan Assets and Oil Exports
Libyan Assets
During 2011, the United States and others froze tens of billions of dollars in Libyan state assets,
and the Obama Administration placed targeted sanctions on Libyan oil companies and other
entities in support of Executive Order 13566 and U.N. Security Council resolutions 1970 and
1973. The TNC has identified up to $170 billion in Libyan assets that were blocked worldwide,
and it has sought access to those funds over the last 12 months. U.N. Security Council Resolution
2009 reiterated the Security Council’s intent to ensure that frozen assets are made available as
soon as possible to and for the benefit of the Libyan people and established a number of
conditions and mechanisms to regulate the return of assets. The U.S. Department of the
Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has issued general licenses that authorize
new transactions with Libyan state entities and maintain the asset freeze established under
Executive Order 13566 on named individuals and a handful of state entities. In December 2011,
the Obama Administration unblocked over $30 billion of roughly $37 billion in frozen Libyan
assets, building on a previous transfer of $1.5 billion in assets for the benefit of the Libyan people
and the TNC.28
Libya’s Oil Production, Exports, and Revenue
Libya’s oil production and export infrastructure survived the revolution relatively unscathed,
although some facility damage, the departure of large numbers of laborers and skilled technicians,
and the lack of maintenance during the conflict were expected to limit the speed with which
production and exports would be restarted.29 However, efforts to restore operations have
27 The United Nations Department of Political Affairs is responsible for UNSMIL.
28 See U.S. Department of the Treasury, General License No. 11 with respect to Unblocking the Government of Libya,
its Agencies, Instrumentalities, and Controlled Entities, and the Central Bank of Libya, With Certain Exceptions,
December 2011; U.S. Department of the Treasury, Fact Sheet: Lifting Sanctions on the Government of Libya,
December 16, 2011; and State Department, Office of the Spokesperson, Unfreezing Assets to Meet the Critical
Humanitarian Needs of the Libyan People, Washington, DC, August 25, 2011.
29 The oil terminal at Brega reportedly suffered the most damage, along with support infrastructure elsewhere.
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proceeded rapidly. Prior to the conflict, Libya was exporting 1.3 million barrels of oil per day; in
July 2012, Libyan officials reported that production was roughly 1.56 million barrels per day.30
The U.S. Energy Information Administration has projected that Libyan output could return to pre-
conflict levels by the end of 2012, but Libyan officials hope to reach the target by October. The
importance of oil exports for Libya cannot be overstated, as the IMF reported in February 2011
that over 90% of state revenue came from the hydrocarbon sector in 2010. The U.S. Treasury
Department has removed restrictions on transactions between U.S. persons and Libyan oil firms.
International Criminal Court (ICC) and United Nations
Human Rights Council Investigations31
Prior to Muammar al Qadhafi’s death, some observers argued that the prospect of an International
Criminal Court (ICC) trial made it less likely that he would have agreed to relinquish power or to
have surrendered to the opposition.32 The death of Muammar al Qadhafi, the arrest in Libya of his
son Sayf al Islam, and the detention of former intelligence chief Abdullah al Senussi in
Mauritania have complicated efforts to prosecute these individuals on charges of crimes against
humanity issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC).33 Outstanding ICC arrest warrants
notwithstanding, TNC officials have asserted their intention to prosecute Sayf al Islam al Qadhafi
and Abdullah al Senussi in Libyan courts, and have filed an admissibility challenge with the ICC
to that effect in the case of Sayf al Islam al Qadhafi. He remains in the custody of the Zintan
militia, ostensibly until the completion of a national prison facility to house high-level
detainees.34 Some observers have speculated that leaders in Zintan may be seeking to leverage
Sayf al Islam’s detention for national influence. Four ICC personnel were detained in June and
July 2012 after Zintan security officials suspected them of passing messages to or from Sayf al
Islam al Qadhafi. Al Senussi is in detention in Mauritania, where authorities have signaled they
intend to try him on fraudulent passport charges rather than comply with requests to extradite him
to Libya, France, or the Hague.
On March 8, 2012, the U.N. Human Rights Council’s Commission of Inquiry issued its final
report on the Libyan conflict and concluded that crimes against humanity and war crimes were
committed.35 With regard to government forces, an official summary of its findings stated,
30 Marie-Louise Gumuchian and Ali Shuaib, “Libya sees return to pre-war oil output in October,” Reuters, July 26,
2012.
31 For more information on the ICC and Africa, see CRS Report R41116, The International Criminal Court (ICC):
Jurisdiction, Extradition, and U.S. Policy, by Emily C. Barbour and Matthew C. Weed and CRS Report RL34665,
International Criminal Court Cases in Africa: Status and Policy Issues, coordinated by Alexis Arieff.
32 For example, see International Crisis Group, “Popular Protest in North Africa and the Middle East (V): Making
Sense of Libya,” Middle East/North Africa Report No. 107, June 6, 2011.
33 On June 27, 2011, Pre-Trial Chamber I of the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for three
individuals: Muammar al Qadhafi, his son Sayf al Islam al Qadhafi, and intelligence chief Abdullah al Senussi, for
“crimes against humanity committed against civilians” not including “war crimes committed during the armed conflict
that started at the end of February.” For more information, see U.N. Document S/PV.6528, Provisional Record of the
6528th meeting of the Security Council, May 4, 2011, and ICC Prosecutor’s Office, Public Redacted Version of
Prosecutor’s Application Pursuant to Article 58 as to Muammar Mohammed Abu Minyar Gaddafi, Saif Al-Islam
Gaddafi, and Abdullah Al Senussi,” May 16, 2011.
34 OSC Report GMP20120218950038, “Libya: TNC Chief Gives Interview on Revolutionaries, Sayf al-Islam,”
February 17, 2012.
35 The commission members are Cherif Bassiouni of Egypt, Asma Khader of Jordan, and Philippe Kirsch of Canada.
(continued...)
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international crimes, specifically crimes against humanity and war crimes, were committed
by Qadhafi forces in Libya. Acts of murder, enforced disappearance, and torture were
perpetrated within the context of a widespread or systematic attack against a civilian
population. The Commission found additional violations including unlawful killing,
individual acts of torture and ill-treatment, attacks on civilians, and rape.36
With regard to opposition forces, the commission found that
the thuwar (anti-Qadhafi forces) committed serious violations, including war crimes and
breaches of international human rights law, the latter continuing at the time of the present
report. The Commission found these violations to include unlawful killing, arbitrary arrest,
torture, enforced disappearance, indiscriminate attacks, and pillage.
The commission previously found in its June 2011 interim report that it did not believe “that the
violations committed by the opposition armed forces were part of any ‘widespread or systematic
attack’ against a civilian population such as to amount to crimes against humanity.” However, in
the March 2012 report, the commission stated that it was “deeply concerned that no independent
investigations or prosecutions appear to have been instigated into killings committed by thuwar.”
Author Contact Information
Christopher M. Blanchard
Specialist in Middle Eastern Affairs
cblanchard@crs.loc.gov, 7-0428
(...continued)
See U.N. Document A/HRC/17/44, “Report of the International Commission of Inquiry to investigate all alleged
violations of international human rights law in the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya,” June 1, 2011.
36 U.N. Human Rights Council, Report of the International Commission of Inquiry on Libya, A/HRC/19/68, March 8,
2011.
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