The International Criminal Court is set to hold a historic hearing from May 19 to 21 in the case of Libyan defendant Khalid Mohamed Ali El Hishri, who is being held by the court on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity allegedly committed in Libya.

The court’s judges will hear the evidence presented against El Hishri at the hearing to determine whether his trial should proceed, according to Human Rights Watch.

First Procedural Hearing in January

On January 28, the first procedural hearing was held in El Hishri’s trial, on charges of war crimes including cruel treatment, torture, attacks on human dignity, rape, sexual violence, and the killing of a number of detainees at the Mitiga Prison in Tripoli.

El Hishri is the first person to appear before the International Criminal Court regarding atrocities committed in Libya since the UN Security Council referred the situation in Libya to the ICC Prosecutor in 2011 to investigate serious crimes committed in the wake of the popular uprising.

Human Rights Watch said El Hishri is a former high-ranking member of the Deterrence Force to Combating Terrorism and Organized Crime, a Tripoli-based militia affiliated with the Presidential Council and formerly known as the Special Deterrence Force.

A Message to Thousands of Victims

Alice Autin, a researcher at the organization, believes that “seeing a suspect finally on the International Criminal Court’s docket, 15 years after the end of the 2011 Libyan revolution, sends a strong message to the thousands of victims of serious crimes in Libya that their struggle for justice has not been forgotten.”

She added: “As atrocities continue across Libya, the progress made in this case should spur Libyan authorities and the international community to take action to end the rampant impunity that continues to fuel violence.”

What are the charges against El Hishri?

According to the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, he faces 17 charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity, including torture, rape, sexual violence, murder, enslavement, and persecution.

These charges relate to crimes allegedly committed at the notorious Mitiga Prison in Tripoli between 2014 and 2020 against Libyan and non-Libyan detainees. El Hishri is alleged to have directly committed, ordered, and facilitated these crimes by exploiting his authority over the prison.

German authorities arrested El Hishri last July pursuant to an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court, and he was subsequently transferred to the court in The Hague in December 2025.