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🛒 تسوق الآنLibya's Public Security Service: A Militia at the Heart of Tripoli's Fragmented Security
Libya's Public Security Service: A Militia at the Heart of Tripoli's Fragmented Security
The Public Security Service (PSS) is one of Libya's most powerful armed formations, operating as a state security agency under the Ministry of Interior while functioning in practice as a militia with deep roots in the country's post-2011 conflict landscape. Established in July 2018 and headquartered in a former tobacco factory in Ghout al-Shaal, Tripoli, the force commands significant territory west of the capital and plays a central role in Libya's fractured security architecture. Its evolution from battlefield militia to government-backed security agency reflects the broader challenges facing Libya's attempt to build unified national institutions.
Origins and Structure
The PSS evolved from the Special Operations Force, which itself drew fighters from the defeated Al-Sawaiq Brigade — a Zintan-based armed group — alongside new recruits. Its founder, Major Imad Trabelsi, built the force after the Al-Sawaiq Brigade's defeat by Libya Dawn factions. In July 2018, the Government of National Accord formally renamed it the General Security and Security Centers Service and appointed Trabelsi as its commander. The force established control over several areas west of Tripoli and set up its main headquarters in the General Tobacco Company building in Ghout al-Shaal, where it remains as of 2024. The PSS operates alongside other major Tripoli-based armed groups including the Special Deterrence Forces (RADA) and the Internal Security Agency (ISA), as well as the 444 Combat Brigade and the Stability Support Device, all of which compete for influence and territory within the capital.
Human Rights Concerns and Migrant Detention
International human rights organizations have repeatedly accused the PSS of serious violations, including arbitrary detention, enforced disappearances, and the mistreatment of detainees. The agency has been directly linked to the management of migrant detention centers in Tripoli, most notably the Al Mabani facility, where widespread abuse has been documented by the United Nations and international media. Reports describe severe overcrowding, physical violence, extortion, forced labor, and killings inside these centers. In 2021, Guinean migrant Aliou Candé was killed when guards opened fire into a packed cell at Al Mabani — an incident that drew international condemnation but resulted in no known accountability. Libya's fragmented security landscape and ongoing political divisions have made independent oversight of these facilities virtually impossible, leaving detainees with little recourse to justice.
Broader Security Fragmentation and Outlook
The PSS exists within a broader ecosystem of armed groups that have proliferated since the fall of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011. At one point, an estimated 30 armed groups operated in Tripoli alone; by mid-2017, four major factions dominated the capital. The 2019–2020 war launched by General Khalifa Haftar against Tripoli temporarily unified some of these groups in defense of the city, but competition for territory and resources resumed after the fighting ended. The PSS's continued prominence underscores Libya's fundamental challenge: the absence of professional, unified security forces capable of asserting state authority. With the country still divided between rival governments in Tripoli and the east, and with foreign-backed militias continuing to operate with impunity, the prospect of meaningful security sector reform remains distant. Until Libya's political actors agree on a unified command structure and accountability mechanisms, forces like the PSS will continue to operate as both protectors and predators within the communities they control.
The story of the Public Security Service is ultimately the story of Libya itself — a nation where the lines between state institutions and armed militias have become permanently blurred, and where the promise of post-revolution stability remains unfulfilled.
