Libya: Health minister, senior officials arrested on corruption charges

Libya’s Public Prosecutor has ordered the detention of the health minister and senior officials from the Government of National Unity (GNU) over irregularities in the importation of cancer medications from Iraq.

The health minister, the director of the Pharmacy Department, the head of the Public Tender Committee, and the official responsible for the Central Tender Committee at the ministry were all detained, along with the representative of the pharmaceutical import company. The charges stem from the importation of a medication used in cancer treatment from a factory in Iraq, without following the approved legal and technical procedures.

According to a statement from the Public Prosecutor’s office, investigations were launched to examine whether the relevant authorities adhered to the regulations governing the purchase of medicines.

Investigators discovered that the suspected officials breached regulations concerning contracts — technical, financial and legal — by not coordinating with the General Authority for Combating Cancer, the official entity responsible for approving imported cancer drug types.

Earlier, Prime Minister of the Government of National Unity, Abdulhamid Dbeibeh, issued a decision suspending the health minister and referring him for investigation after preliminary reports raised suspicions of corruption in the importation of cancer medications.

The Public Prosecutor, Al-Seddiq Al-Sour, pledged to take all necessary legal actions to hold accountable anyone found to have been involved in cases affecting public health or misappropriating public funds, emphasising that investigations will include all those implicated, without exception.

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