Libya has called for an explanation after the US snatched a man it alleges is an al-Qaeda leader during a raid in Tripoli.
Ali Zeidan, Libya’s prime minister, suggested on Sunday that his government was not informed of the plan before US commandos seized Nazih Abdul-Hamed al-Ruqai, known by his alias Anas al-Liby, in the Libyan capital on Saturday.
“The Libyan government is following the news of the kidnapping of a Libyan citizen who is wanted by US authorities,” Zeidan said in a statement. “The Libyan government has contacted to US authorities to ask them to provide an explanation.”
Liby is wanted by the US for his alleged role in the East Africa embassy bombings that killed 224 people in 1998. The US had offered $5m for information leading to his capture.
US Secretary of Defence Chuck Hagel praised the US military on Sunday saying that the raid underlined the precision, global reach and capabilities of the US forces.
George Little, a spokesman for the US Defence Department, said that Liby was being “lawfully detained by the US military in a secure location outside of Libya”.
Al Jazeera’s Jeanne Meserve, reporting from Washington, added that even though the US had said that Liby would be interrogated where he is being held before he is brought to justice, it is unclear whether he will be brought to justice in a US courtroom or a miltary tribunal.
‘Work of piracy’
Mohammed El-Hadi, Al Jazeera’s correspondent in Tripoli, quoted Liby’s wife as saying that he was seized as he headed to morning prayer by eight to 10 masked men.
“His wife saw the men getting out of two cars in front of the house … she added that the masked men immediately attacked him before he could get out of his car,” our correspondent said.
“She said she was listening to them and heard some of them speaking in a Libyan dialect … and some information indicated they were Libyan special forces.”
Nabih al-Ruqai, Liby’s brother, blamed foreign troops for using illegal methods: “This is a work of piracy from foreign troops on Libyan land to kidnap my brother, they were supposed to present legal documents to the Libyan government and my brother should be tried here in Libya – like any Libyan.”
The raid in Libya coincided with a failed attempt in Somalia to seize Ahmed Godane, a leader of the al-Qaeda-linked group al-Shabab.
The New York Times quoted an unnamed US security official as saying that the raid in Barawe was in response to the al-Shabaab assault last month on the Westgate mall in Kenya, which left at least 71 people dead.
Commenting on the attack, John Kerry, US secretary of state, warned al-Qaeda fighters that they could “can run but they cannot hide”.
Al Jazeera’s Peter Greste, reporting from Somalia’s capital Mogadishu, said US sources confirmed they had failed to capture or kill their intended target.
In contrast to Libya’s statement, Somalia’s Prime Minister Abdi Farah Shirdo said “our cooperation with international partners on fighting against the terrorism is not a secret”.
“Understand me, that fighting is not a secret. And our interest is to get a peaceful Somalia and free from terrorism and problems.”
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