Two suspects arrested over rocket attack on UN in Libya

Two suspects have been arrested in Tripoli by the authorities in connection with a rocket attack on the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) in August 2025, according to The New Arab, October 11.

Libya’s Attorney General made the announcement at the beginning of last weekend, with the prosecutor’s office noting in their statement that the two people suspected of carrying out plan had been questioned by detectives and were now being held in pre-trial detention.

The attack failed to either kill or cause damage to the Mission, and took place during a speech by the Libyan envoy to the UN, Hanna Tetteh, who was giving a briefing to the UN security council on the situation in her country at the time.

So far the identities of the suspects, nor their potential motives for the attack, have been revealed to the public, though prosecutors said in their statement they had been “confronted with incriminating evidence.”

The UN compound that was the focus of the attack, authorities claim, was saved after they foiled the intended plan to use an anti-tank missile against the Mission, with the Russian-made SPG rocket instead landing in and damaging a civilian home, though the explosion did not result in any deaths. Security forces were quickly able to locate two further missiles and the missile launcher shortly after the incident.

In a statement from USNMIL following the attack, the international body refused to be intimidated, reiterating its unreserved “commitment to supporting Libya’s efforts toward peace, stability, and the rule of law.” Meanwhile the Government of National Unity (GNS) in Tripoli called out the botched attack, saying that it was a “serious act aimed at undermining security and stability, and damaging Libya’s relations with the international community.”

Just as Tetteh had been discussing the need for free and fair elections and a “unification of institutions through a sequenced approach” at the UN Security Council, Tripoli reiterated the need for improved, professionalised and most importantly unified security forces, which they claimed would be crucial to preventing further “illegal armed groups” from emerging.

So far, no further details have emerged on the attackers or their motives, and with the two suspects being held in pre-trial detention, it remains unclear when this information will be released. However, given the high-profile nature of the attack, it is likely that these details will be revealed in due course.

The New Arab, The Associated Press, X (formerly Twitter), Maghrebi.org