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The International Criminal Court (ICC) has unsealed an arrest warrant for Libyan militia member Saif Suleiman Sneidel, accusing him of committing war crimes, including murder and torture, between 2016 and 2017.
According to the ICC’s Office of the Prosecutor, there are “reasonable grounds to believe” Sneidel participated in three executions in which 23 people were killed, as well as acts of torture and “outrages upon personal dignity” in Benghazi and surrounding areas.
The crimes are alleged to have occurred between June 2016 and July 2017.
The warrant was originally issued in November 2020 but kept under seal to improve the chances of capturing Sneidel and to safeguard the investigation.
Deputy Prosecutor Nazhat Shameem Khan said the decision to make the warrant public followed a second application aimed at “increasing prospects for arrest” by engaging with states, the UN Security Council, and the wider international community.
Sneidel is believed to have served in Group 50, a sub-unit of the Al-Saiqa Brigade once led by the late Mahmoud Mustafa Busayf Al-Werfalli.
The ICC had previously issued two arrest warrants against Al-Werfalli for eight executions in Benghazi, three of which prosecutors allege Sneidel took part in.
The prosecution further claims Sneidel was a close associate of Al-Werfalli and held a senior leadership role in the brigade.
The ICC has been investigating alleged atrocities in Libya since 2011, following a United Nations Security Council referral amid the country’s protracted instability after the overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi.
The court also confirmed that another Libyan suspect, Khaled Mohamed Ali El Hishri, was arrested in Germany on July 16, 2025, on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
He remains in custody pending legal proceedings.
