In a special August 2021 report on the Libyan operations of Russian-affiliated mercenaries, the Wagner Group, the BBC drew attention to one particularly devastating element of the ongoing conflict in the North African State, that of the use of landmines. In a recovered Samsung Galaxy tablet, that was supposedly once owned by a Wagner Group mercenary, were illustrations of both such mines as well as an annotated map of Ain Zara, a residential district in Tripoli, that detailed 35 mine positions across the suburbs. While there have been prior reports of mines in Libya during the 10 years since the fall of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, the increase in reports since 2018 following the advancement of Khalifa Haftar’s forces against the former-Government of National Accord (GNA) poses a significant challenge for the safety of civilians and requires a robust response.
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