South African prosecutors have dropped charges against 95 Libyan nationals who were arrested last month during a widely publicized police raid on what authorities had described as an illegal military training camp in Mpumalanga province, officials announced on Thursday.
The men, who had entered South Africa on study visas, were reportedly receiving military training at the camp where firearms and ammunition were found during the raid.
During their court appearances, the accused claimed they were undergoing security training, not military training, at the camp.
The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) of South Africa stated that there was insufficient evidence to prosecute the men.
“The only charge that was brought to the NPA was related to immigration violations,” said NPA spokesperson Monica Nyuswa. “The charge was for contravening immigration laws, not for military training.”
Nyuswa further clarified that the men were charged with violating immigration laws, not military laws, and their lawyer had anticipated the charges would be dropped, with their deportation to Libya expected within 48 hours.
Following the dismissal of charges, the men were handed over to immigration officials. Their lawyer, Nico du Plessis, emphasized that his clients had maintained they were in South Africa for security training purposes.
“They are happy with the charges being dropped, as we had expected,” Du Plessis told reporters. “However, as far as we know, investigations into the alleged military training at the camp are ongoing, though our clients were only involved in security training.”
This development ends the legal proceedings against the group but raises further questions regarding the nature of the training they were receiving and the broader implications for security and immigration in the region.
