Conflicting accounts of Al-Marimi’s transfer and trial
LIBYA – A report by Britain’s BBC has set out the account given by lawyers for Libyan national Abu Agila Masud Al-Marimi of his detention in Libya and his transfer to the United States to stand trial in Washington, amid a legal dispute over the lawfulness of his transfer and the US court’s jurisdiction.
Defence account of Al-Marimi’s handover to US investigators
According to the report, followed and summarised by Al-Marsad, the defence team said Al-Marimi was secretly detained by gunmen and then handed over, handcuffed and hooded, to agents of the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) who were waiting near an aircraft to fly him out of Libya. The lawyers described what happened as an unlawful abduction and forced rendition.
Justice Department position and January 2027 trial date
The report quoted the US Department of Justice as saying that the way Al-Marimi was brought to the United States does not prevent his trial from going ahead under US law. The trial is scheduled for January 2027 after being postponed three times. The report drew on documents submitted to the court by the defence team in setting out the details of the case.
Release in 2021 and alleged re-arrest
The lawyers said Al-Marimi had been held in Libya after the events of 2011 and was serving a prison sentence before being released on humanitarian grounds on 30 September 2021 and returning to his family in Tripoli. About two weeks later, however, masked gunmen raided his home and detained him again without identifying themselves or explaining why he was being arrested.
Allegations of assault on him and his family
The defence team alleged that Al-Marimi was taken from his home by members of a militia it accused of committing abuses, and that he was dragged along the ground despite his health problems and limited mobility. His son was beaten with a rifle and his wife and daughter were also assaulted, according to the lawyers’ account.
Detention in Misrata and handover in December 2022
The account in the report added that he was taken to a prison in the city of Misrata and held in solitary confinement for several days. On the morning of 11 December 2022, his captors gave him a sandwich and tea and told him to gather his belongings, leading him to believe he was about to be released, before he was handed over to FBI agents.
US aircraft and personal belongings in a bag
According to the report, a US government aircraft was waiting at Misrata International Airport when Al-Marimi arrived, his head covered with a loose cloth hood. His American escorts asked for the procedures to be speeded up because onlookers were watching. His belongings were handed over in a plastic bag resembling a bin bag, containing a copy of the Quran, a prayer mat, clothes, personal items and medicines.
Questioning during the flight and continued detention
The report said FBI agents questioned Al-Marimi during the flight to the United States, gave him a full medical examination and provided him with clean clothes and blankets. He has remained in US custody since December 2022.
US investments mentioned in the report
The report also referred to the Tripoli-based government of Abdulhamid Dbeibah receiving US financial investments, including 16 million US dollars to support Libya’s democratic transition and a contract with the US company Honeywell International, in the context of its discussion of the transfer. The mere mention of these facts in the report does not establish that there was any financial deal in exchange for handing over Al-Marimi.
Defence challenges the court’s jurisdiction
Al-Marimi’s defence argued that his transfer amounted to unlawful rendition and forced abduction that should strip the Washington court of jurisdiction. It alleged that an armed group carried out the abduction after diplomatic negotiations stalled, in violation of the law and of Libyan sovereignty, and that what happened was an imposition of force rather than the enforcement of a lawful ruling — one that could stoke fears over the United States’ ability to seize whomever it wants.
US government’s response to the abduction argument
The lawyers called for Al-Marimi to be returned to Libya, while the US government stood by a legal principle which it said allows the court to hear the case regardless of how the defendant was brought before it, even if taken by force.
Request for a hearing before Judge Dabney Friedrich
US prosecutors said the limited exceptions to this principle do not apply to Al-Marimi’s case because Libya, according to their argument, was entitled to transfer him to the United States in whatever manner it chose. The defence team has asked for a hearing before Judge Dabney Friedrich to present its arguments.
