Tripoli, 5 October 2013:
Libyan and Russian authorities have confirmed that Wednesday’s attack on the Russian embassy in Tripoli was in retaliation . . .[restrict]for the murder of a prominent revolutionary leader.
The Libyan Foreign Ministry said in a statement that it was a reaction to the murder of Mohammed Andals Suaissi by a Russian woman. Media sources have also quoted Russian officials as saying the assault on the embassy was triggered by the killing.
The Russia Today newspaper said the alleged killer is a 24 year-old woman, reportedly called Ekaterina Ustyuzhaninova. It added that the former professional weight-lifter went to Libya in 2011 to fight against the anti-Qaddafi uprising.
Conflicting reports have been circulating about the alleged killer, after Suassi’s murder in his home, apparently with his own Kalashnikov, and the non-fatal stabbing of his mother.
A neighbour said the pair were married but that the victim’s mother refused to accept her as a daughter-in-law, sparking the murder. Other reports, however, say the Qaddafi-supporter targeted the victim because of his role in the revolution. Pictures are also circulating claiming to show “Death to rats” written on a wall in the victim’s blood – “rats” is a term still applied to revolutionaries by supporters of the old regime.
Security sources confirmed to the Libya Herald yesterday that a Russian woman was apprehended near the scene of the crime, which took place in the Suq Al-Juma district of Tripoli, and is now being held in a Mitiga prison. [/restrict]
