A/HRC/34/42 47. On 1 April, 4 migrants were killed in Al-Nasr detention facility in Al-Zawiya and approximately 20 injured following an apparent escape attempt. One guard was injured. Médecins sans Frontières said that on 17 August unidentified armed men attacked its boat that rescues migrants in international waters, shooting at the bridge and boarding the boat. The Libyan Coast Guard acknowledged encountering the boat, but claimed that they only shot in the air and denied boarding it. On 21 October, a man from a speedboat with “Libyan Coast Guard” written on it reportedly attacked a rubber boat carrying 150 migrants, 14 nautical miles out to sea, causing it to collapse and the migrants to fall into the sea. After the attack, a non-governmental organization, Sea-Watch, was able to rescue 120 persons and recovered 4 bodies. A further 26 persons are presumed dead. Reportedly, Libyan naval forces in Tripoli denied the attack, but admitted an encounter with Sea-Watch on the same day, claiming that it was in Libyan waters. D. Media professionals, activists and human rights defenders 48. Media professionals, activists and human rights defenders do not enjoy freedom of expression in Libya. They face a range of abuses, including abductions and murder, or summary executions. Armed groups are the main perpetrators. The State has been unable to provide effective protection. 49. Media professionals, activists and human rights defenders continued to be targeted for speaking out on human rights issues or criticizing armed groups. On 28 March, armed groups aligned to Operation Dignity detained two bloggers and held them in the Grenada detention facility in Benghazi. The bloggers were denied access to a lawyer and family visits. They were released after four months. On 30 March, a blogger and journalist was taken by armed groups in Tripoli and questioned regarding his social media posts. While detained, he said that he was beaten with a stick and attacked by a dog. He was released on 3 April. 50. On 3 April, armed groups supportive of the Government of National Accord used heavy weapons to attack the building in Tripoli of the Al-Naba television channel, which was aligned to the General National Congress, in an apparent attempt to stop it broadcasting. The building was badly damaged. Armed groups subsequently entered the building and intimidated the staff. 51. Journalists and media professionals who work in conflict zones also face danger. On 2 July and 2 October respectively, snipers from groups pledging allegiance to ISIL in Sirte killed Abdelkader Fassouk, a Libyan journalist, and Jeroen Oerlemans, a Dutch journalist. On 23 June, a sniper in the Al-Qawarsha neighbourhood in Benghazi, allegedly linked to the Benghazi Revolutionaries Shura Council, killed Libyan journalist Khaled Showiref AlZentani. 52. Human rights defenders also faced danger in their work. On 16 March, Abdul Basit Abu-Dahab, was killed in a car bomb attack in downtown Derna. He had advocated for many years for the rule of law and human rights in Libya. He had received numerous death threats for his work and survived two previous assassination attempts in 2013 and 2014. 53. While article 26 (6) of the Libyan Political Agreement commits parties to support the proper functioning of the National Council for Civil Liberties and Human Rights, the country’s national human rights institution has remained largely non-operational. In 2014 and 2015, its staff and board members were subjected to threats and forced to close their offices in Tripoli. Some fled the country. The term of the Council elapsed in late 2014 and has not been renewed by the House of Representatives, as is required by law. The former legislature, the General National Congress appointed a parallel institution in March 2015. 10