ICC issues 4 arrest warrants for crimes in Libya

By Betul Yuruk

UNITED NATIONS (AA) - The International Criminal Court (ICC) chief prosecutor announced Thursday that four arrest warrants were issued for the alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Libya.

"I have applied for those to be unsealed, and the judges will decide that application in due course," Karim Khan told the UN Security Council.

He said that he was seeking two additional warrants from the independent judges of the ICC.

"Warrants are not an end in themselves, but they are an important step in the rights of victims and survivors that their lives matter to you," he said.

The UN Security Council referred Libya to The Hague-based court to launch an investigation into alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in February 2011 following Moammar Gadhafi’s crackdown on protesters, which later led to his ouster.

Khan said that significant progress has been made as a result of "more dynamic field-focused" investigations over the past six months.

"There's cause for optimism that we are finally on track," he said.

He said that more than 500 items of evidence of a vast array of types, audio, video, and satellite, have been collected in addition to testimonial evidence.