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At least eight dead as gunmen storm luxury hotel in Tripoli: Libyan official
Date
January 28, 2015 - 1:50AM
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Ahmed Elumami


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Libyan security forces surround the Corinthia Hotel during the attack by gunmen linked to Islamic State. Photo: AFP
At least eight people, including five foreigners, were killed when gunmen stormed a luxury hotel in the Libyan capital Tripoli on Tuesday, a local security official said.

It was not immediately clear who staged the attack, but the SITE monitoring service said a militant group claiming affiliation with Islamic State had claimed responsibility. Islamic State has seized swathes of Syrian and Iraqi territory.

Gunfire could be heard inside the Corinthia Hotel, Tripoli's most prominent hotel where government officials and foreign delegations often stay. There were conflicting reports about the exact number and the identity of those killed as the gunmen battled security forces.


Security forces take up positions around Corinthia Hotel in Tripoli after it was attacked by gunmen. Photo: Reuters
"Eight people were killed during the storming of the hotel... Five foreigners, two of them are women. (Also) one security man and two of the attackers," Mahmoud Hamza of the Tripoli security force told local al-Naba television.

Earlier officials said three security guards had been killed in a car bomb blast just before the gunmen stormed the hotel. It was not immediately clear whether the three were among the eight deaths reported by Hamza or were additional casualties.

Hamza did not give the nationality of the foreigners killed. Other officials gave conflicting accounts of whether any foreign nationals had been killed in the attack.


Hostages taken: The Corinthia hotel in the Libyan capital Tripoli.
"The security forces are evacuating the guests floor by floor. There was shooting between the gunmen and the security forces," Essam Naas, a spokesman for Tripoli security forces, said earlier has the attack unfolded.

"It is more than likely that there are hostages held by the gunmen on the 23rd floor."

One gunman has been arrested, Naas said, adding that security forces were surrounding the seaside hotel. Two Filipino women were wounded by smashed window glass.

Tripoli-based al-Nabaa television channel said "senior officials" were inside the hotel but no further details were immediately available.

Most foreign governments closed their embassies and pulled their staff out of Tripoli after fighting between two rival factions erupted last summer. But some diplomats, business and trade delegations still visit the capital.

Libya is mired in conflict between two rival governments - an internationally recognised one based in eastern Libya and a rival administration set up in Tripoli after an armed faction called Libya Dawn took over the capital.

A second official of the Tripoli security force, Omar Khadrwai, told local television the prime minister of the Tripoli-based administration as well as three foreign nationals had been evacuated from the hotel.

Citing social media, the SITE monitoring service said the attack was revenge for the death of Abu Anas al-Liby, a suspected al-Qaeda member accused of helping plan the 1998 bombings of the USembassies in Tanzania and Kenya.

Liby died in a New York hospital this month ahead of his scheduled trial.

It was not clear whether any guests remained inside the hotel, which is a major hub for diplomatic and government activity in Tripoli.

"It's an evolving situation, what we're hearing is what is being reported on the news," said a spokesman for the Malta-based Corinthia Hotel chain, Matthew Dixone.

"Our thoughts are with our staff and guests," he said.

"We have no further information."

EU Foreign Affairs Chief Federica Mogherini expressed concern, calling the attack "another reprehensible act of terrorism which deals a blow to efforts to bring peace and stability to Libya."

She expressed "solidarity with the victims and their families" but provided no details of casualties.

"Such attacks should not be allowed to undermine the political process," Mogherini said in a statement.

The North African nation has been wracked by conflict since the overthrow of dictator Muammar Gaddafi in a 2011 uprising, with rival governments and powerful militias battling for control of key cities and the country's oil riches.

The Islamist-backed Fajr Libya (Libya Dawn) militia alliance took control of Tripoli last summer, forcing the country's internationally recognised government to flee to the far east.

AFP, Reuters


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