Libyan authorities on Saturday announced increased security measures in second city Benghazi and the arrest of two suspects in connection with the killing of Mahmoud al-Werfalli, a member of the Libyan National Army (LNA).
Mahmoud Al-Werfalli, a commander in an elite unit attached to LNA, was shot dead on Wednesday along with his cousin.
The ICC issued a first warrant for Al-Werfalli’s arrest in August 2017, accusing him of having ordered or personally carried out seven separate rounds of executions of 33 people in 2016 and 2017.
In July 2018, the ICC issued a second arrest warrant for Al-Werfalli for his “alleged responsibility for murder as a war crime.”
Col. Ali Madi identified the suspects in Al-Werfalli’s killing as Mohammed Abdeljalil Saad and Hanine Al-Abdaly.
The latter is the daughter of lawyer and rights activist Hanan Al-Barassi, who was gunned down in November in Benghazi in broad daylight.
Military authorities in Benghazi said Al-Abdaly was arrested while “threatening a fellow citizen with a handgun,” according to a video footage of the alleged incident.
Possession of the handgun in itself is considered a crime, they said, AFP reported.
Meanwhile, the head of security in Benghazi, Gen. Abdelbasit Bougheress, said on Saturday that on “instructions” from Haftar, all shops must install surveillance cameras before Tuesday.
Cars with tinted windows will be banned in the city, as well as vehicles without license plates, he added, among other measures.
