Justice and accountability are crucial aspects of achieving and maintaining peace in Libya, International Criminal Court (ICC) [official website] chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda told [ICC report, PDF] the UN Security Council [official website] Thursday. She also encouraged [UN News Centre report] the Libyan government to create effective strategies for handling atrocities and to invest in institutions responsible for managing those strategies. Despite being faced with the challenges associated with lacking sufficient resources, Bensouda was hopeful for the nation’s future because of the signing of a UN-backed Agreement in 2015, along with the encouraging response and cooperation by the Libyan Prosecutor-General’s office. Bensouda called upon all relevant resources, national and international, to support the Libyan government in their on-going efforts to deter terrorism and protect the nation from instability. In her report, the prosecutor also addressed the detention of Saif Al-Islam Gaddafi and Abdullah Al-Senussi, the migrant crisis throughout the nation and concern for the well-being of civilians.

Libya has remained politically unstable since the 2011 deposition of Muammar Gaddafi [JURIST backgrounder] and subsequent civil war. The internationally-recognized Libyan Parliament voted [JURIST report] in January to reject a proposal by the UN-supported unity government to curb the country’s political crisis. In March of last year the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) [official website] released a report outlining a peace proposal [JURIST report] intending to end the country’s political instability and “deteriorating military situation.” Also in March, the head of the UNSMIL warned the UN Security Council that without intervention from the international community and UN, Libya is likely to become unstable [JURIST report] in the wake of repeated terrorist attacks.