Off the wire
• British FTSE 100 loses 1.37 pct on Tuesday  • G7 energy ministers agree to further improve sustainable energy security  • Jardim extends deal with Monaco for four more years  • Mandela Capture Site in S. Africa to get upgrade  • 2nd LD Writethru: Putin, Kerry discuss closer Russia-U.S. cooperation on Ukraine crisis  • 1st LD Writethru: Oil prices gain on positive demand forecast  • U.S. federal budget surplus hits record high in April  • Number of traffic accidents in Malta up 10 pct  • 1st LD Writethru: U.S. dollar declines on weak data  • Interview: China's stock market volatility normal: U.S. experts  
You are here: 　 Home

Turkish president condemns attack on Turkish cargo ship

Xinhua, May 13, 2015 Adjust font size:

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday strongly condemned an attack on a Turkish cargo ship off the Libyan coast, killing one person and wounding several other crew members.

"Turkey is following this issue especially with Ankara's rights reserved," Erdogan said at a joint press conference with his visiting Gabonese counterpart Ali Bongo Ondimba in Ankara.

Erdogan also called on Libyan officials to find the perpetrators.

"There is not a dual-headed system in Libya, but a multi-headed one," Erdogan said.

The ship, "Tuna 1," was shelled from land 13 miles away from the Libyan coast near the port of Tobruk and then attacked twice by air as it was trying to leave the area, the Turkish foreign ministry said in an statement Monday.

The Turkish foreign ministry demanded Monday that Libyan authorities end actions threatening the security of other Turkish ships in the region.

In Libya, local media blamed forces loyal to renegade general Khalifa Haftar for the attack on the Turkish ship. Haftar's warplanes launched several similar raids on Derna, pounding Islamist militants in the town.

Haftar, who played a major role in toppling Libya's ex-leader Muammar Gaddafi, has been waging war on armed Islamist groups since last May. His Operation Dignity gained support from Libya's internationally recognized government, now exiled in Tobruk.

In the past, Libyan Prime Minister Abdullah al-Thinni accused Ankara of interfering in Libya's domestic affairs, including providing support for the renegade government.

He warned of ending Turkish business contracts in the country which triggered an exchange of harsh words last week between Turkey and the Tobruk government.

Libya, a major oil producer in North Africa, witnessed a frayed political process following the toppling of its leader Muammar Gaddafi during the 2011 political turmoil, and is now deadlocked in a dogfight between the pro-secular army and Islamist militants.

Tripoli fell into the hands of Libya Dawn last August. The armed Islamist coalition has established its own government to confront the internationally recognized one, currently in exile in the eastern town of Tobruk. Endit