18 November 2018: The U.N. Security Council has imposed sanctions on Salah Badi, the former militia commander of the General National Congress (GNC) for his attempts to destabilize Libya, according to a Friday statement by the U.K. Foreign & Commonwealth Office.
The sanctions include asset freezing and a travel ban. The GNC was formed in 2012 to represent the Libyan people, but was rendered illegitimate after the formation of the U.N.-recognized Government of National Accord (GNA).
“The UK –along with our US & French partners- has secured United Nations Security Council agreement to sanction Salah Badi under the terms of UN Security Council Resolution 2213 (2015),” the statement said.
The U.K., France and the U.S. will continue to hold to account those who undermine Libya’s stability and security, the statement added.
“[These sanctions] send a clear message from the international community that acts of violence against the Libyan people will not be tolerated.”
Badi is the senior commander of the al-Somood Brigade, a militia opposed to the GNA.
He has sought to undermine the political solution in Libya. In August and September 2018, he instigated heavy clashes in Tripoli in which at least 120 people were killed, most of whom were civilians.
He was also involved in the 2014 Libya Dawn Operation, during which a grouping of pro-Islamist militias attacked Tripoli International Airport and seized parts of the capital along with the coastal cities from Misrata to the border with Tunisia and cities further south, including Gharyan, Nalut and Jadu.
