Misrata 1. Introduction Misrata Is the Third Largest City in Libya, With

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Chapter Nine

Misrata

1. Introduction

Misrata is the third largest city in Libya, with a population of approxi- mately 517,000 inhabitants before the conflict.1 It is a port city located on the far western edge of the Gulf of Sidra along the Mediterranean Coast, 187 kilometers (116 miles) east of Tripoli and 825 kilometers (512 miles) west of Benghazi.2 The city center lies just off the coast, with the seaport to the east and the airport to the south. The center is connected by a number of major roads, including Tripoli Street, the main commercial boule- vard in downtown Misrata that connects to the Libyan Coastal Highway. A number of suburbs, including Al-Ghayran and Al-Shawati, extend out from the city center.3 Misrata is traditionally regarded as the country’s business capital, serv- ing as a central locale for the exchange of commodities and materials with other cities. The city’s steel mill industry is one of its principal sources of income and employment, and the industry has been able to expand throughout the years with its owners holding considerable influence in the city. Misrata is one of the country’s most modern cities, with infra- structure that includes new roads, electricity and communication centers,

1 United Nations Inter-Agency Mission, Misrata: 10 to 14 July 2011, UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs 4 (2011), available at http://reliefweb .int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/Full_report_157.pdf. Other estimates put Misrata’s population closer to 380,000 people before the conflict. See Misratah, WolframAlpha, available at http://www.wolframalpha.com/input/?i=Misratah&lk=1&a=ClashPrefs_*City .*Misratah.Misratah.Libya--. See also Aidan Lewis, Misrata: City under siege, bbc, May 10, 2011, available at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-13118724. 2 Physicians for Human Rights, Witness to War Crimes: Evidence from Mis- rata, Libya (Aug. 2011) [hereinafter “Witness to War Crimes”], available at https:// s3.amazonaws.com/PHR_Reports/Libya-WitnesstoWarCrimes-Aug2011.pdf. 3 Misrata Factsheet, UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, Apr. 24, 2011, available at http://ochanet.unocha.org/p/Documents/Misrata%20Factsheet %20-%2024%20April%202011_FINAL.pdf. 586 chapter nine modern buildings, as well as large iron, steel, carpet and textile factories, and private companies and trade centers.4 During the 2011 war, the Misrata theater was the most strategically important location of military operations in the Tripolitania region, as it was caught between the two major Qadhafi strongholds of Sirte and Tripoli. Given its position along the Libyan coast, its large, modern port was vital to the thuwar forces’ resupply efforts. Misrata was under siege by Qadhafi forces from February to May 2011, and arguably saw the bloodiest and most traumatic events of the civil war. Qadhafi forces shelled the city relentlessly between mid-March and mid-May 2011, and resumed shelling again in June. The fighting continued until early August, when Qadhafi forces retreated from the region.5 As the only major thuwar held city in Tripolitania during the war, Mis- rata was the subject of attacks by Qadhafi forces from Tripoli and Sirte.6 Misrata was surrounded by cities held by the Qadhafi forces: Zlitan to the west, Tawergha to the southeast and Bani Walid to the south. The city was subjected to constant shelling and attack, as the rebels in Misrata put up stiff resistance, incurring a heavy death toll.7 The Qadhafi regime was never able to regain control of the city during the war, and the Misrata thuwar prevented the regime from dividing the western part of the country from the thuwar controlled areas in the eastern region.8 Certain areas in the vicinity of Misrata were particularly affected during the conflict, such as the towns of Kararim, Tumina and Karzaz, located to the south of the city.9 The town of Tawergha, located 38 kilometers (23 miles) southeast of Misrata along the road to Sirte, experienced the most dramatic effects from the war and its aftermath. Tawergha was home to an estimated 30,000 residents, before the entire community was

4 Rob Young, Libya’s commercial hub recovers slowly, bbc, available at http://www.bbc .co.uk/news/business-16366285. For more information see Misrata, Wikipedia, available at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Misrata. 5 Report of the International Commission of Inquiry on Libya, u.n. hrc. 19th Sess., Annex I, ¶ 392. U.N. Doc. A/HRC/19/68, advance unedited version (Mar. 2, 2012). 6 International Crisis Group, Holding Libya Together: Security Challenges After Qadhafi 7 (Dec. 14, 2011) [hereinafter “Holding Libya Together”], available at http://www.crisisgroup.org/~/media/Files/Middle%20East%20North%20Africa/North %20Africa/115%20Holding%20Libya%20Together%20--%20Security%20Challenges%20 after%20Qadhafi.pdf. 7 Id. 8 Id. See also Ch. II, Sec. 3.3. 9 See generally, Physicians for Human Rights, Witness to War Crimes, supra note 2.