10 members of Tunisia’s diplomatic staff kidnapped in Libya last week have been freed and returned to Tunis on Friday, and the Tunisian government has shut down its consular operations in Tripoli.
No group has claimed responsibility for the abduction.
Armed groups in Libya have repeatedly kidnapped diplomats and foreign nationals to pressure their governments to free Libyan militants held in jails overseas, Reuters says.
Libya’s two rival governments – one internationally recognised in the east and the other self-declared in Tripoli – are fighting for control, four years after the fall of Muammar Gaddafi.
Tunisia had been one of the few countries to keep a diplomatic presence in Tripoli. Most Western governments and companies pulled out last summer when the armed faction called Libya Dawn took over the capital and set up its own government.
Three of the 10 Tunisians had been freed earlier in the week after talks between the captors and the Tripoli government. Seven more freed hostages arrived in Tunis on Friday, to be greeted by government officials and family.
“All 23 staff from the consulate had now returned and we have decided to close the consulate in Tripoli because they cannot guarantee our security. These armed militias are not under state control,” Foreign Minister Taieb Bakouch told reporters.
“Our advice to all Tunisians is leave Libya and return immediately. We cannot again be subject to any blackmail.”