Kerry Denounces Kidnapping of Libyan PM as 'Thuggery', Cameron Pledges Support to Zeidan
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Thursday denounced the kidnapping of Libyan Prime Minister Ali Zeidan and pledged the United States would continue to work with Libya to shore up its security.
"Libyans did not risk their lives in their 2011 revolution to tolerate a return to thuggery," Kerry said in a statement, also welcoming Zeidan's release after he was held by gunmen for several hours.
Meanwhile, David Cameron gave Britain's backing to the Libyan PM, pledging to help overcome the country's "security challenges".
A spokesman for the British prime minister said he had spoken by phone to Ali Zeidan, who was "calm and very measured" despite being seized by gunmen in Tripoli and detained for several hours on Thursday.
"They talked about how the UK would continue to support the Libyan government and the Libyan people during this challenging transition, including support in helping them overcome the security challenges that they face," said the spokesman.
The pre-dawn seizure of Zeidan from Tripoli's Corinthia hotel came five days after U.S. commandos embarrassed and angered the government by capturing senior al-Qaida suspect Abu Anas al-Libi off the streets of Tripoli and whisking him away to a warship in the Mediterranean.
Britain, along with France, was at the forefront of the military intervention in 2011 that led to the fall of the Moammar Gadhafi's regime.
Source: Agence France Presse
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