Allow UNHCR back into Libya

The organization appeals to the Libyan leader Colonel M’uammar al-Gaddafi to rescind this decision, allow the UNHCR to operate in Libya, and sign a memorandum of understanding with the agency. [...] The announcement by the UNHCR on 8 June that the Libyan authorities had ordered the refugee agency to leave the country further highlights the urgent need to address human rights concerns in Libya in relation to the treatment of refugees, asylum-seekers and migrants. [...] The recent announcement regarding the office closure brings to light the precarious conditions under which the UNHCR was operating and stresses the need not only to repeal the decision, but also to formalize the presence of the UNHCR in Libya. [...] In the absence of an asylum-system in Libya, the UNHCR has been fulfulling an essential role in conducting refugee status determination interviews, including screening individuals pushed- back from Italy in the framework of the country’s bilateral agreements with Libya. [...] Despite the contraints under which the UNHCR operated, the agency played a positive role in improving the protection afforded to thousands of people in Libya.