Egypt has close ties with the Khalifa Haftar (pictured), and has for years provided his forces with covert support [Getty]
Amnesty International has called on Egypt to release Egyptian-Libyan human rights activist Nasser al-Hawari, who was detained by police outside his home in Alexandria on 9 February.
Al-Hawari was arrested on the same day his TV show discussed the alleged abuse of prisoners by militia linked to Libyan commander Khalifa Haftar, Amnesty said.
The activist said during the show that he would reveal further evidence of human rights abuses in a future broadcast.
Khalifa Haftar is the de facto ruler of eastern Libya and a close ally of the Egyptian government, which has for years provided covert military, intelligence and logistics support to his forces.
Authorities have refused to provide information to al-Hawari’s family about his whereabouts, according to Amnesty, which obtained copies of complaints submitted to the Public Prosecution.
“Nasser al-Hawari’s distressed family have not heard from him since he was seized without explanation or an arrest warrant and subjected to enforced disappearance,” said Mahmoud Shalaby, Amnesty’s international researcher.
“Egyptian authorities must immediately reveal Nasser al-Hawari’s whereabouts and allow him to contact his family and lawyers,” Shalaby said.
Egyptian police also briefly detained al-Hawari’s brother, and threatened to re-arrest him if he reported details of his family member’s detention.
Al-Hawari is the director of the rights monitor Victims for Human Rights and founded the Libyan Observatory for Human Rights, which has documented cases of torture of prisoners in Libya for more than a decade.
He fled Libya for Tunisia at the beginning of 2024 after being detained by militia in Tripoli. He has been in Egypt since June 2024.
He is an outspoken critic of Haftar and was forced to flee eastern Libya in 2023 after criticising human rights abuses carried out by his forces.
“The close relationship between the Egyptian government and Khalifa Haftar should never justify retaliating against Nasser al-Hawari for exposing human rights violations committed by forces under Khalifa Haftar’s command,” Shalaby said.
