Libya PM Zeidan Freed After Kidnap At Gunpoint

Libya's Prime Minister Ali Zeidan has been freed several hours after being kidnapped at dawn by gunmen at the Tripoli hotel where he is living.

The brazen abduction seemed to be in retaliation for a raid by US special forces in the capital over the weekend that saw a suspected al Qaeda leader seized.

It appeared Libyan forces had intervened in some way and the abductors did not free Mr Zeidan voluntarily.

People had reportedly opened fire at the building where he was being held to demand his release, a Reuters journalist said.

A militia commander affiliated with the interior ministry told a private Libyan TV station the PM was freed when members of a Tripoli-based militia stormed a house where he was held hostage.

Haitham al Tajouri, commander of the so-called Reinforcement Force, told Al Ahrar television that his men exchanged fire with the captors but that Mr Zeidan was not hurt.

After his release, the PM appeared live on television, saying: "Libyans need wisdom ... not escalation ... to deal with this situation."

Ali Zeidan (c) arrives at the government HQ after being freed

The 63-year-old politician also thanked some rebels who helped in his release and urged them to join the regular armed forces.

A group of former rebels said it had "arrested" Mr Zeidan after US Secretary of State John Kerry confirmed Libya's role in the US capture of Libyan Abu Anas al Libi.

A spokesman for the group, known as the Operations Room of Libya's Revolutionaries, said: "His arrest comes after ... (Kerry) said the Libyan government was aware of the operation."

The militia group, which had been hired by the government to provide security in the city, said it had seized Mr Zeidan "on the prosecutor's orders" for "crimes and offences prejudicial to the state" and its security.

But the public prosecutor's office said it had issued no such warrant for Mr Zeidan's arrest.

His abduction reflected the weakness of the government, which is virtually held hostage by powerful militias, many of which are made up of Islamic militants.

He was detained at the interior ministry's anti-crime department, said an official there, and he was reported to be in "good health and was treated well".

Mr Zeidan pictured with Prime Minister David Cameron

He had been taken from the luxury Corinthia Hotel after being seized by up to 150 armed men who arrived in pick-up trucks.

Witnesses said a large group of them entered the building, some stayed in reception while others headed to the 21st floor where Mr Zeidan was staying.

The gunmen scuffled with the prime minister's guards before they seized him and led him out at around 5.15am (local time), said the witnesses, adding he offered no resistance while he was being led away.

Sky sources said the man believed to be behind the abduction was Abu Obeiida, who is thought to have taken over the militia group.

The group appeared to post a warning of its intentions on Facebook on Monday. It said it "holds everyone who is involved in co-operating with foreign intelligence" responsible for the "kidnap" of al Libi and "will pursue them and bring them to justice".

Al Qaeda suspect Abu Anas al Libi was seized by the US last Saturday

Two years after a revolution toppled Libya's Muammar Gaddafi, the fragile central government has been struggling to contain tribal militias and groups of former rebels who spearheaded the uprising.

Sky's Tim Marshall said: "The prime minister of Libya's jurisdiction runs about to the end of his hotel corridor and then stops because there is no real government, certainly in the sense that we understand it.

"It is a lawless place that is falling apart into different factions, tribes, regions, areas and groups. The fact this man has been detained does not alter the trajectory of Libya's spiral into chaos.

"What is very important about the fact that the PM can be taken from his hotel by armed men is symbolic of how bad things have got."

There has been anger among militant groups over the US special forces operation that seized al Libi, whose family met Mr Zeidan hours before the PM's abduction.

Several groups accused the government of colluding in or allowing the weekend raid, though the government denied having any prior knowledge of the operation.

Al Libi, who was whisked away to a US warship in the Mediterranean, is suspected of being involved in the twin bombings of US embassies in Nairobi, Kenya, and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania in 1998.

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