The Libyan Special Forces (LSF) ( ar, القوات الخاصة الليبية), are an elite

Libyan National Army The Libyan National Army (LNA; ar, الجيش الوطني الليبي, ''al-jaysh al-waṭaniyy al-Lībii'') is a component of Libya's military forces which were nominally a unified national force under the command of Field Marshal Khalifa Ha ...

unit, formed from a mixture of paratroopers, paramilitary forces and commandos. (They should not be confused with the similarly named Lightning Bolt Brigade (''Sawaiq'' Brigade) which is part of the

Zintan Brigades The Zintan Brigades are armed units linked to the town of Zintan and its surrounding area, allied to, but separate from, the Libyan National Army. They played a large part in the Libyan Revolution which overthrew Gaddafi and are currently heavi ...

.) Prominent LSF commander

Mahmoud al-Werfalli Mahmoud Mustafa Busayf al-Werfalli ( ar, محمود مصطفى بوسيف الورفلي; 1978 – 24 March 2021) was a Libyan general, commander in al-Saiqa, an elite unit of the Libyan National Army, one of the warring factions in Libya's civi ...

was indicted in 2017 and 2018 by the

International Criminal Court The International Criminal Court (ICC or ICCt) is an intergovernmental organization and international tribunal seated in The Hague, Netherlands. It is the first and only permanent international court with jurisdiction to prosecute individuals f ...

for the war crime of murdering and ordering the murders of non-combatants, remaining at large .

Origins

The pro-government force emerged from a militia in 2010, during the Muammar Qaddafi government. In the 1990s, the Libyan Special Forces helped to suppress the rebellion of

Libyan Islamic Fighting Group The Libyan Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG), also known as ''Al-Jama'a al-Islamiyyah al-Muqatilah bi-Libya'' ( ar, الجماعة الإسلامية المقاتلة بليبيا), was an armed Islamist group. Militants participated in the 2011 Liby ...

Composition and hierarchy

, they numbered about 5000 soldiers and reported to the Ministry of Defence. In 2013, the Libyan Special Forces commander was

Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

Wanes Abu Khamadah. From 2011 to at least 2017,

was a member of the unit. Since December 2015, he held positions of command responsibility. , his title was Axes Commander and he held responsibility for at least one detention centre. In 2017 and 2018 he was indicted for the war crime of murdering and ordering the murders of non-combatants by the

(ICC) under Article 8(2)(c)(i) of the Rome Statute. , the ICC warrants for his arrest remained outstanding.

Benghazi Clashes

Libyan Special Forces came to prominence after its deployment in

Benghazi Benghazi () , ; it, Bengasi; tr, Bingazi; ber, Bernîk, script=Latn; also: ''Bengasi'', ''Benghasi'', ''Banghāzī'', ''Binghāzī'', ''Bengazi''; grc, Βερενίκη ('' Berenice'') and ''Hesperides''., group=note (''lit. Son of he Ghaz ...

in summer 2013, in an attempt to control the growing disorder. As a result, it came under repeated attacks and several of its officers killed. The force is reportedly popular in Benghazi, particularly in light of its stance against the Islamist

Ansar al-Sharia Ansar al-Sharia or Ansar al-Shariah is a name used by a collection of radical or militant Islamist groups or militias, in at least eight countries. While they share names and ideology, they lack a unified command structure. * Ansar al-Sharia (Yeme ...

group and because it is seen as a symbol of the reborn Libyan armed forces. The Libyan Special Forces Brigade reportedly has had frictions with the

Libya Shield Force The Libya Shield Force is an armed organisation formed in 2012 out of anti-Gaddafi armed groups spread throughout Libya. The Libyan parliament designated much of the Libya Shield Force as terrorist and elements of the Libya Shield Force were ide ...

, a government-sanctioned powerful militia; despite these frictions, between November and December 2013 the LSF Brigade fought the Ansar al-Sharia militia, suffering some losses. At the end of July 2014 the Brigade was pushed out of its main base in Benghazi's Buatni district by Islamist fighters from the

Shura Council of Benghazi Revolutionaries The Shura Council of Benghazi Revolutionaries ( ar, مجلس شورى ثوار بنغازي, ''Majlis Shura Thuwar Benghazi'') is a military coalition in Benghazi composed of Islamist and jihadist militias, including Ansar al-Sharia, Libya Shie ...

. A senior Libyan Special Forces official later claimed to the Libya Herald that LSF losses in Benghazi between the 21 and 30 July totaled some 63 dead and 200 wounded. Whilst the official was unsure of the number of Islamist dead, he claimed that it was in the dozens. By 13 August 2014 the LSF presence in Benghazi was almost entirely limited to Benina Airport; the base of Operation Dignity's helicopter unit. Many of the forces top commanders were in turn operating out of the Operation Dignity stronghold of Tobruk.

Related voices

References

{{reflist, refs= {{Cite web , url=https://www.icc-cpi.int/CourtRecords/CR2017_05031.PDF , title=ICC-01/11-01/17: ''The Prosecutor v. Mahmoud Mustafa Busayf Al-Werfalli'' Warrant of Arrest , publisher=

, date=2017-08-15 , access-date=2017-08-16 , archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20190415193126/https://www.icc-cpi.int/CourtRecords/CR2017_05031.PDF , archive-date= 2019-04-15 , url-status=live {{cite web, title=Libya: Threat of Tripoli Fighting Raises Atrocity Concerns — Hiftar's Forces, Rival Militias Have History of Abuses, publisher=

Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization, headquartered in New York City, that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. The group pressures governments, policy makers, companies, and individual human ri ...

, date=6 April 2019, url=https://www.hrw.org/news/2019/04/06/libya-threat-tripoli-fighting-raises-atrocity-concerns, access-date=9 April 2019, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190409021756/https://www.hrw.org/news/2019/04/06/libya-threat-tripoli-fighting-raises-atrocity-concerns, archive-date=9 April 2019, url-status=live {{cite web, last1=The Office of the Prosecutor, title=Fifteenth report of the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court to the United Nations Security Council pursuant to UNSCR 1970 (2011), publisher=

, date=9 May 2018, url=https://www.icc-cpi.int/itemsDocuments/180509-otp-rep-UNSC-lib-ENG.pdf, access-date=9 April 2019, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190414010418/https://www.icc-cpi.int/itemsDocuments/180509-otp-rep-UNSC-lib-ENG.pdf, archive-date=14 April 2019, url-status=live, df=dmy-all Military of Libya Military units and formations established in 2010