The Al-Qubba Criminal Court in eastern Libya has issued severe judicial rulings in a case involving the manufacturing and trafficking of the drug Captagon, sentencing five defendants to life imprisonment, and sentencing a sixth defendant to 25 years in prison, in one of the cases highlighting the growing activity of synthetic drug networks within the country.
The Libyan Public Prosecutor's Office explained, in a statement issued on the evening of November 5, 2026, and reported by local and international media on Friday morning, that the Public Prosecution had referred six defendants to the judiciary after confirming their involvement in a criminal gang specialized in the production of phenethylline, known as Captagon, for the purpose of promotion and trafficking.
The court sentenced the first defendant to 25 years in prison and fined him 22,000 Libyan dinars, while it issued in absentia life sentences against the other five defendants, fining each of them 70,000 dinars, and ordered the confiscation of the seized psychotropic substances.
Authorities did not disclose the total quantity of drugs associated with the case, but they published photos of narcotic pills and equipment used in the manufacturing process, including metal molds for pressing pills and tools for measurement and packaging.
These rulings come amid growing fears of Libya becoming a regional hub for the production of synthetic drugs and their transit to other markets, taking advantage of the political and security division the country has experienced since 2011, and the weak oversight of some borders and desert regions.
A military force affiliated with the Libyan National Army, led by Khalifa Haftar, had announced last October the seizure of more than 1.3 million narcotic pills near the city of Kufra in the southeast of the country, following an armed clash with smugglers that resulted in the injury of three soldiers.
These incidents indicate the widening security challenges associated with drug trafficking, which are no longer limited to traditional smuggling operations but also include manufacturing and distribution activities within Libyan territory.
The case gains regional importance given Libya's geographical location and its connection to transit routes between North Africa and the Sahel region, which makes combating drug networks linked to strengthening security and judicial cooperation between neighboring countries.
The recent rulings reveal a judicial crackdown on the crimes of manufacturing psychotropic substances, yet the sustainable dismantling of criminal networks remains dependent on securing borders, drying up funding sources, and pursuing the entities that provide the materials and equipment used in manufacturing.
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