16 April 2025: Tripoli court sentences son of intel chief to seven years in prison for Mleqta assassination attempt
This week we look at the Mleqta assassination attempt court sentence, as well as the ongoing economic crisis with the GNS submitting a budget and Eni pledging to invest 8 billion EUR in Libya.
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Tripoli Court of Appeal sentences son of intelligence chief to seven years in prison for attempting to kill Dabaiba adviser Mleqta
Incident: On 10 April, the Criminal Department of the Tripoli Court of Appeal sentenced seven individuals for their involvement in the attempted assassination of Abdul Majeed Mleqta, an advisor to PM Abdul Hameed Dabaiba. Among those convicted, the first defendant received an 11-year prison term, while the second and third defendants were sentenced to seven years each. The fourth defendant was given a five-year sentence, and the fifth, sixth, and seventh defendants were sentenced to one year each. In part, the sentences were for prison with hard labour. However, it seems these sentences were issued in absentia, with many of the individuals currently detained in Tunisia.
Notably, one of the defendants who received seven years is Mohammed Hussein al-Ayeb, the son of the Director of the Libyan General Intelligence Service Lieutenant-General Hussein Mohammad al-Ayeb. He played a significant role in orchestrating the attack. The court convicted him of forming a ‘criminal gang’ and for causing significant damage to ‘public property’. Mohammed al-Ayeb held the position of director of the department that oversaw the preparation and execution of the assassination attempt within the Libyan General Intelligence Service.
Mleqta welcomed the court's decisions but held the Presidential Council ‘fully responsible politically and administratively to take the necessary measures towards the head of this agency’ since it is under the administration of the PC. Mleqta asserted that either Hussein al-Ayeb’s awareness of his son's actions or his lack of oversight demonstrates institutional failures. He cited Article 28 of Law No. 11 of 2012, which holds officials accountable for neglect or actions undermining the integrity of their positions. Mleqta emphasized that the fact that the head of the agency remains in his position without investigation and accountability represents ‘a serious legal and security loophole.’ Mleqta emphasized that Libya's recovery depends on strict adherence to the principle of accountability without exception.
Comment: Abdul Majeed Mleqta survived an attempted assassination on 13 June 2024, when his convoy was targeted by a car bomb in Tripoli. Mleqta is a former NTC member from Zintan and now head of the Public Private Partnerships (PPP) Libya organisation.
On 29 March 2025, six Libyan defendants were sentenced to 44 years in prison each by the Tunis Court of First Instance for unrelated terrorism-related offenses and for planning an assassination. Four were sentenced in person, another two in absentia.
Al-Ayeb has always emphasized that his service had nothing to do with the attack. He said it was possibly a personal dispute between Mleqta and the two assassins, but agreed that the Attorney General investigates some members of his service, including his son Mohammed. He reportedly intervened to prevent extradition of those arrested in Tunisia to Libya to avoid exposing his son's and a senior official’s roles in the incident.
Significance: These rulings by the court in Tripoli underscore the heightened security threats facing Libyan state officials and the urgent need to intensify security measures and judicial efforts to address such crimes and hold perpetrators seriously accountable. Mleqta’s calls for greater accountability and reform emphasize the need for institutional strength to overcome these challenges.
After the conviction of the perpetrators in Tunisia, their deportation to Libya is to be expected soon. The extradition of the convicts would not only be highly inconvenient for Hussein al-Ayeb, as concerned members of his intelligence service could reveal further information about the involvement of his son and possibly also of the Director himself, but might have also led to much harsher sentences by the Criminal Department of the Tripoli Court of Appeal. It could be, that the Court was urged to announce the sentences in absentia to avoid this. However, this is not a closed case for the Director of the Libyan General Intelligence Service. As such, tensions around Mleqta’s attempted assassination are likely to persist.
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Blame game around responsibility for the economic crisis continues as internationals call for reform and GNS submits 174 billion LYD budget to HoR
Incident: The fallout from the Central Bank of Libya (CBL) statement last week, which highlighted an economic crisis driven by overspending by both governments, has continued this week with attempts to apportion blame. On 8 April, the GNU held its first Council of Ministers meeting for 2025, chaired by PM Dabaiba. The meeting primarily focused on the economic crisis, with Dabaiba reiterating the dangers of parallel spending and noting that recognition of such spending is a first step towards reform. He claimed that the GNU has not carried any public debt through its term in office and noted that the government itself is only responsible for 10% of the budget, with the rest going to other state institutions and to pay salaries.
NOC efforts to secure investment continue with ENI pledging EUR 8 billion, but concerns around corruption persist, with Arkenu under the spotlight again
Incident: This week, Libya’s hydrocarbons sector scored an important success as Italy’s ENI has pledged to invest EUR 8 billion in it over the next 4 years; in the meantime, the Libyan authorities continue their efforts to secure foreign investment in the sector. On 9 April, the CEO of Italy’s ENI, Claudio Descalzi, announced that ENI will invest approximately EUR 24 billion in Libya, Algeria, and Egypt over the next four years to help boost energy production. About EUR 8 billion will be invested in Libya. On the same day, the Chairman of the National Oil Corporation (NOC), Masoud Suleiman, participated in the OMC Med Energy conference in Italy, which was attended by more than 400 international energy companies from 27 countries.
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Blame game around responsibility for the economic crisis continues as internationals call for reform and GNS submits 174 billion LYD budget to HoR
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