ABU DHABI: Libyan Prime Minister Abdullah Al Thani acknowledged yesterday that the United Arab Emirates has arrested seven Libyans, denying reports that the Gulf state had detained 30.
“Only seven people” are being held, Thani told reporters in Abu Dhabi, without saying why they had been arrested.
Pro-Islamist Libyan media reported on September 1 that some 30 Libyans had been detained by UAE authorities.
The arrests reportedly came after air raids last month on Islamist fighters in Libya that US officials said were carried out by the United Arab Emirates.
Thani, who arrived in Abu Dhabi Tuesday as part of a delegation led by the head of Libya’s parliament, Aqila Issa, added that the Libyan embassy had “taken measures to ensure their rights.”
But he added that “if they had committed a crime against UAE laws they will certainly be put to a fair trial... and if they are innocent... they will be released.” AFP
