- Libyan authorities transferred 134 foreign women from a Tripoli prison to immigration detention for deportation.
- The women completed their criminal sentences but remained in custody due to their immigration status.
- The transfer shifts responsibility from the Judicial Police to migration officials to facilitate administrative repatriation.
Libya’s Judicial Police transferred 134 foreign female prisoners from a women’s prison in Tripoli to an illegal immigration detention center on July 26, moving them out of the criminal corrections system and into deportation processing.
The women had completed their criminal sentences but remained in custody because of their immigration status, according to the agency’s announcement. Officials said the move followed coordination with the Directorate for Combating Illegal Migration, known as DCIM.
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The agency said the transfer would allow authorities to complete the legal and administrative steps required for deportation. The process began at the Women’s Reform and Rehabilitation Institution in Tripoli.
Major General Ahmed Abu Kraa, head of the Public Relations and Media Office, said the correctional authorities no longer had jurisdiction over migrants whose criminal sentences had ended.
“The Judicial Police is responsible for managing correctional facilities and enforcing criminal sentences, and is not the authority in charge of immigration matters. their [migrants'] continued detention in prisons does not fall within the agency's jurisdiction.”
Abu Kraa said the transfer took place in coordination with the Agency for Combating Illegal Immigration to complete deportation procedures “in accordance with applicable laws and regulations.”
The transfer separates criminal custody from deportation processing
The move shifts the women from a criminal justice setting to an administrative detention system. Officials described that separation as a way to clear prisons of people who have finished their sentences but cannot leave Libya because deportation arrangements remain pending.
The destination centers are managed by DCIM, the body responsible for combating illegal migration. Authorities intend to use the centers while arranging the women’s return through their embassies or international organizations.
The reporting contains two totals. The official announcement identified 134 women, while other reports cited 143 female inmates of various foreign nationalities. The transfer location and destination remained the same in both accounts.
Oversight came from the Inspectorate of Reform and Rehabilitation Institutions at the Office of the Attorney General and the Tripoli Public Prosecutor. Both bodies were involved as the women left the Tripoli facility.
Libya’s detention system faces scrutiny as transfers continue
The transfer occurred as Libyan institutions faced renewed scrutiny over prison and migration detention conditions. On July 26, a UN mission met officials in Benghazi to discuss improving prison conditions.
Earlier in July 2026, reports from the UN Support Mission in Libya criticized detention centers for “ruthless and systematic human rights violations.” The concerns included arbitrary detention and a lack of due process.
Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have also criticized the migration facilities for overcrowding and poor humanitarian standards. Moving someone from a prison therefore changes the legal setting without necessarily ending confinement.
The women’s administrative detention could bring them closer to repatriation. It can also involve prolonged stays in the shelter centers while officials arrange documents, coordination and travel.
Deportation depends on coordination beyond the prison system
The final stage described by Libyan authorities involves handing detainees to their respective embassies or to international organizations such as the International Organization for Migration. The stated route includes Voluntary Humanitarian Return, or VHR.
That process requires cooperation among Libyan migration officials, foreign diplomatic missions and organizations involved in return arrangements. The transfer itself does not constitute removal from Libya.
The distinction is central to the agency’s explanation. Prison officials said they manage correctional facilities and enforce criminal sentences, while migration authorities handle people held for immigration reasons after criminal proceedings end.
The announcement placed the transfer within Libya’s broader effort to clarify responsibilities across a fragmented judicial and detention system. The agency has pushed back against what it described as the arbitrary holding of foreign nationals in criminal prisons after their sentences expire.
The move came amid renewed international attention on Libya
The transfer also followed a July 21 notification from the U.S. State Department to Congress concerning plans to allocate $41 million to reopen the U.S. Embassy in Libya. The department said Libya’s role in “migration flows” makes the country “vital to U.S. interests.”
The embassy plan and the prison transfer involved different government actions. Together with the UN meeting in Benghazi, they placed Libya’s migration and detention policies under continuing international attention.
The July 26 announcement did not say when the women would leave Libya. Their next steps depend on the administrative procedures, embassy coordination and return arrangements described by the agency.
This article provides general information and is not legal advice. Consult a qualified immigration attorney about your specific case.
