A criminal court in Tripoli has sentenced a former Libyan security commander and six of his associates to death by firing squad over the killing of two women and the abduction of their children in 2016.

The Tripoli Criminal Court found all seven defendants guilty of the killings and of detaining the victims' children for six months, Libya's Attorney General's Office said. The defendants were sentenced to death by firing squad as retribution for the murders.

Alongside the death sentences, the court imposed prison terms of six years and two months on the defendants for the offences of abduction and possession of unlicensed firearms. The court also ordered that a summary of the ruling be published in two places: the location where the verdict was issued and the area where the crimes took place. The defendants were also exempted from criminal costs.

A case dating back to 2016

The case dates back to 2016, when two Libyan women were killed and their children were taken and held for six months. The Public Prosecution pursued the case against the former security commander and the six other defendants through the Libyan courts, leading to the ruling delivered on Wednesday.

The Attorney General's Office did not disclose the names of the victims, identifying them only by their initials in its statement on the verdict. The names of the defendants were also not published in the statement reported by Libya Review.

The verdict marks the conclusion of criminal proceedings over the killings and the prolonged detention of the children, according to the statement. The ruling is among the most prominent delivered by the Tripoli Criminal Court this year in a case involving a former security official, and it closes a case that had moved through the courts for close to a decade.

Justice after a decade

Libya's justice system has faced severe strain since the 2011 uprising that toppled Muammar Gaddafi, with courts in Tripoli operating amid political division, armed groups and competing authorities. Cases involving former security officials have often taken years to reach a verdict, and the Tripoli proceedings in this case were no exception.

The prosecution was brought by the Public Prosecution, which presented the case against the former commander and the six men who served alongside him. The court heard the case before convicting all seven defendants of the killings and of holding the victims' children captive for half a year after the deaths of their mothers.

Death by firing squad is the method of execution used for capital sentences in Libya, and death sentences are the most severe punishment available under Libyan law. The court's decision to impose the death penalty as retribution for the murders reflects the gravity with which it treated the killing of the two women.

What the ruling orders

Beyond the sentences themselves, the court directed that a summary of its ruling be published in two areas: where the verdict was issued and where the crimes were committed. Such publication orders are intended to make the outcome of the case known in the communities most affected by it.

The additional prison terms for abduction and possession of unlicensed firearms run alongside the death sentences, covering the separate offences the court found proved. The exemption from criminal costs means the defendants will not be required to pay the costs of the proceedings.

The Attorney General's Office announced the verdict in a statement, which was reported by Libya Review on 12 November 2026 and corroborated by a second report on QNC News. The statement did not say whether the defendants would appeal, and no further details of the proceedings were published. Source: Libya Review, 12 November 2026, corroborated by QNC News.