American military staff detained in Libya released

On Friday Libyan authorities released four American military staff after two hours of detention, an official in the US administration said.

The American official gave no more details about the detention, the release or their whereabouts. No information was given about why they were detained.

The New York Times said that the American Defence Department was in continuous contact with the Libyan authorities as soon as they knew the American staff had been detained.

The American newspaper reported anonymous US officials saying that the detained American staff are military attachés in the American embassy in Tripoli.

It is said that they might have been on a reconnaissance mission to find a safe exit for US embassy diplomatic staff to be used in the future when they are in danger.

The US consulate in Benghazi was stormed in September 2012 and the US ambassador to Libya, along with other three Americans, was killed. In November of the same year an American teacher was shot dead in Benghazi.

Source: Al-Sharq