By Libya Herald reporter.
Tripoli, 21 May 2016:
In a bid to encourage diplomats to return to Tripoli, the head of the Temporary Security Committee (TSC) set up by the Presidency Council (PC), Abdulrahman Al-Tawil, has announced that plans are in hand to secure embassies and other diplomatic premises in the capital.
Speaking yesterday, he said that along with safeguarding the safety of the Presidency Council itself, it was the first step towards securing the entire city.
However, Libya-accredited diplomats who have quit Tripoli, mostly for Tunis, almost unanimously say that they will not return until the entire city is safe.
It is certainly not deemed so at the moment. The spate of kidnappings that has plagued it has continued despite the presence of the Presidency Council and the TSC. Many victims have been held for ransom, allegedly by members of militias now supposedly providing security for the PC.
Today, the manager of one of the departments at the Libyan Centre for the Study of Terrorism was reported to have been seized in the city. Abdulnasser Al-Bishti was taken while on his way to work in the west Tripoli suburb of Hay Andalus.
He is thought to have been kidnapped by brigands wanting a ransom although it is not known which brigade they belong to. [/restrict]