Libyan kidnappers make demands for release of 6 hostages
Kidnappers and their six Egyptian hostages in Libya urged Egyptian authorities Saturday to release a Libyan militia commander they are holding in exchange for the freedom of the hostages.
The demands were made through a phone call with Dubai-based broadcaster Al-Arabiya, hours after Egypt announced it was withdrawing embassy personnel from Tripoli, where the two diplomats, three staffers and another Egyptian national were abducted from their homes overnight.
Egypt had earlier reported that its administrative attache had been kidnapped in the Libyan capital late Friday. Libyan Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammed al-Asswad said four other Egyptian diplomats were snatched in the early hours of Saturday. Those kidnapped included the cultural attache al-Helali el-Sherbini, he added.
The abductions came hours after Libya's state news agency reported that Egyptian authorities had arrested Shaaban Hadiya, the commander of the Revolutionaries Operation Room militia. The Libyan government blamed the group for the abduction of Prime Minister Ali Zidan last year. It claims to answer to the army but is widely seen as operating independently.
http://www.sfgate.com/world/article/Libyan-kidnappers-make-demands-for-release-of-6-5175749.php
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