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5,000 foreign fighers fighting along with extremists in Libya: FM

Xinhua, February 28, 2015 Adjust font size:

Libya's Foreign Minister Mohammed al-Dairi said on Saturday that there are some 5,000 foreign militants fighting along with extremists in Libya now and called for international help to curb the terrorism.

The local newspaper Libya Herald quoted al-Dairi as saying that many foreign "terrorist leaders" presented themselves inside Libya.

The leader of the terror group Emir of the Islamic State in Libya, which was responsible for last week's al-Gubba bombing which killed and injured dozens, is a Yemeni.

The newspaper report said that the foreign minister might underestimate the number of the militants, citing the loose border control in south with Mali, Nigeria and Niger might ease infiltration of terrorists.

Mohammed Al-Dairi also called on the international community to lift embargo and arm Libya's national army, stressing that the terror threat is not only to Libya but also to the region and Europe.

Also, Libya's Prime Minister Abdullah al-Thinni is in Russia this weekend for anti-terrorism talks.

Libya has been split east and west by fighting between two factions in this Mediterranean nation since the 2011 ouster of the former long-time leader Moammar Gadhafi.

The country is now plagued by endless violence, kidnappings and assassinations. Endit