The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court said on Wednesday that he has submitted new applications for arrest warrants stemming from his investigations of alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Libya.
Karim Khan told the UN Security Council in the first briefing by an ICC prosecutor from Libyan soil that the applications were submitted confidentially to the court’s independent judges, who will determine whether to issue arrest warrants. He couldn’t provide further details, he said.
“There will be further applications that we will make because the victims want to see action, and the evidence is available, and it’s our challenge to make sure we have the resources (to) prioritise the Libya situation to make sure we can vindicate the promise of the Security Council in Resolution 1970,” Mr Khan said.
In that resolution, adopted in February 2011, the Security Council unanimously referred Libya to the ICC, based in The Hague, Netherlands, to launch an investigation into alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.
The council's referral followed Muammar Qaddafi's brutal crackdown on protesters that was then taking place. The uprising, later backed by Nato, led to Qaddafi's capture and death in October 2011.
Oil-rich Libya was then split by rival administrations, one in the east, backed by military commander Khalifa Haftar, and a UN-supported administration in the west, in capital Tripoli. Each side is supported by different militias and foreign powers.
Libya's current political crisis stems from the failure to hold elections in December 2021 and the refusal of Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibah, who led a transitional government in Tripoli, to step down. In response, the country’s east-based parliament appointed a rival prime minister, Fathi Bashagha, who has for months sought to install his government in Tripoli.
Mr Khan said in his virtual briefing from Tripoli that his visit to Libya, including meetings with victims of violence and abuse from all parts of the country, had reinforced his belief that more needs to be done to ensure their voices are heard, that justice is done and there is accountability for crimes committed against them and their loved ones.
“We can’t allow a sentiment to become pervasive that impunity is inevitable,” he said. “Victims want the truth to emerge.”
The prosecutor said he visited the western town of Tarhuna, about 80 kilometres from Tripoli, where mass graves were discovered in June 2020 following the withdrawal of Mr Haftar’s forces after they failed to take the capital. During a round table meeting, one man told Mr Khan he had lost 24 family members and another said he had lost 15 relatives.
Mr Khan said 250 bodies have so far been recovered in Tarhuna but far fewer have been identified. He said he emphasised to Libya's attorney general, justice minister and forensic science service that his office is willing to provide technical assistance because “the task is so great”.
The prosecutor told the council that for the first time since 2011, the ICC now has a regular presence in the region.
He said his staff has made 20 missions to six countries to collect a variety of evidence, including from satellites, witnesses and audio recordings. The ICC has also built partnerships with Libyan authorities, he said.
“The overwhelming crimes are against Libyans,” Mr Khan said. “And this partnership that we’re trying to refocus and build and foster is absolutely pivotal if we’re trying to move forward.”
The prosecutor said he went to Benghazi and met on Tuesday with the military prosecutor and Mr Haftar.
“I made it clear that we had received evidence and information regarding allegations of crimes committed by the LNA,” he said, using the initials of the self-styled Libya National Army that Mr Haftar commands.
“I said that those would be and are being investigated,” Mr Khan said.
Mr Khan said the ICC wants to ensure that “whether one is from the east or the west, whether one is in the north or from the south of Libya, whether one is a military commander or a civilian superior, there is an absolute prohibition on committing crimes within the jurisdiction of the court”.
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
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MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Bayern Munich v Real Madrid
When: April 25, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Allianz Arena, Munich
Live: BeIN Sports HD
Second leg: May 1, Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid
Day 5, Abu Dhabi Test: At a glance
Moment of the day When Dilruwan Perera dismissed Yasir Shah to end Pakistan’s limp resistance, the Sri Lankans charged around the field with the fevered delirium of a side not used to winning. Trouble was, they had not. The delivery was deemed a no ball. Sri Lanka had a nervy wait, but it was merely a stay of execution for the beleaguered hosts.
Stat of the day – 5 Pakistan have lost all 10 wickets on the fifth day of a Test five times since the start of 2016. It is an alarming departure for a side who had apparently erased regular collapses from their resume. “The only thing I can say, it’s not a mitigating excuse at all, but that’s a young batting line up, obviously trying to find their way,” said Mickey Arthur, Pakistan’s coach.
The verdict Test matches in the UAE are known for speeding up on the last two days, but this was extreme. The first two innings of this Test took 11 sessions to complete. The remaining two were done in less than four. The nature of Pakistan’s capitulation at the end showed just how difficult the transition is going to be in the post Misbah-ul-Haq era.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
