On 31 May The Human Rights Watch (HRW) issued a report on Russia's Wagner Group setting landmines near Tripoli during 2019-2020, recommending the ICC prosecutor to investigate their use of unlawful mines and booby traps. The HRW conducted a visit to Tripoli in March, collected information from mine action groups, and met with groups responsible for surveying and clearing Tripoli's southern suburbs. After cross referencing their findings with information from an electronic tablet left behind on the front lines, which was received and reported on by the BBC, the HRW concluded that the tablet and mines around Tripoli had belonged to the Wagner Group. Lama Fakih, Middle East and North Africa director at HRW, asserted that 'the Wagner Group added to the deadly legacy of mines and booby traps scattered across Tripoli’s suburbs that has made it dangerous for people to return to their homes…A credible and transparent international inquiry is needed to ensure justice for the many civilians and deminers unlawfully killed and maimed by these weapons'. The HRW advocated for ICC prosecution of the Wagner Group, asserting that the use of antipersonnel mines with criminal intent is a war crime.
Read the full report here.