Refugees in Libya marks five years of struggle with Berlin event

Five years after refugees and migrants in Libya launched the 100 Days Protest following mass arrests in Tripoli, Refugees in Libya is set to convene activists, survivors, lawyers and migrant-led organisations in Berlin to reflect on the struggle and the pursuit of accountability.

The event, titled “From the Streets of Tripoli to the ICC: Five Years of Struggle and Solidarity with Refugees in Libya,” will take place on October 3, 2026, at the Spore Initiative in Berlin.

The protest began on October 1, 2021, following mass raids in the Gargaresh area of Tripoli, during which thousands of refugees and migrants were arrested. While some were taken to detention centres, others gathered outside the UNHCR office, where they remained for more than three months demanding protection, evacuation, freedom and an end to violence and abuses in Libya.

According to Refugees in Libya, the protest became a defining moment for migrant-led organising and continued to shape its work over the following five years.

The Berlin gathering comes as proceedings against **Khaled El Hishri**, a former official at Mitiga Prison, move forward at the International Criminal Court (ICC).

The ICC has confirmed all 17 charges against El Hishri, involving alleged crimes against humanity and war crimes, and committed the case to trial.

Refugees in Libya said the case is significant for survivors who experienced or witnessed alleged torture, sexual violence, enslavement, enforced disappearances and killings in Mitiga and other detention facilities.

The organisation, however, said the case also raises broader questions about Libya’s detention and migration-control system.

It said refugees and migrants have for years faced detention, exploitation and violence across Libya, while people attempting to cross the Mediterranean are intercepted and returned to the country.

Refugees in Libya also questioned the role of European governments and institutions in supporting structures involved in interception and containment, arguing that accountability should examine the wider system rather than focus exclusively on individual perpetrators.

The event will examine the El Hishri proceedings, survivor participation and the limits and possibilities of international justice. Speakers will include **David Yambio of Refugees in Libya** and **Allison West of the European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR)**, with the discussion moderated by Viola Castellano.

The organisers said the gathering will also explore how survivors can participate in legal and political processes without being reduced to witnesses, and how court cases can contribute to wider organising and mobilisation.

A second session will bring together migrant-led organisations, African diaspora groups, anti-racist movements, lawyers, journalists, researchers, artists and other groups to discuss solidarity, legal advocacy and collective action.

A multimedia exhibition featuring photographs, testimonies and material from the 100 Days Protest will accompany the event.

Refugees in Libya said the gathering is intended not simply as a commemoration of the 2021 protest, but as an opportunity to examine continuing conditions facing refugees and migrants in Libya.

The programme will begin with an exhibition at 3:30 p.m., followed by a discussion on five years of Refugees in Libya’s organising at 4 p.m. The El Hishri ICC case session is scheduled for 4:45 p.m., followed by food and informal exchanges and small-group discussions from 6:45 p.m.

The event will be held in English, with free entry, at Spore Initiative, Hermannstraße 86, Berlin-Neukölln.