Hommam Al Nassim 
Libya’s former defense minister, Mehdi al-Barghathi, and several of his companions have died after being arrested in Benghazi, the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) confirmed on Thursday.
In a statement, the mission expressed concern over the death and called for an independent and transparent investigation into the circumstances of the detainees’ deaths.
Reports indicate that al-Barghathy and several members of his family were arrested on 7 October by authorities in Benghazi in eastern Libya.
The UN mission confirmed the deaths of seven detainees, including al-Barghathi and one of his sons, citing allegations of ill-treatment and torture in detention.
Benghazi, Libya’s second-largest city, has seen clashes between Libyan National Army forces led by Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar and fighters loyal to Barghathi, who returned to the city years after leaving for Tripoli.
The events come in the context of tensions that have gripped Libya since the beginning of October, as clashes between conflicting forces intensified.